Ottawa Paralympian Stuart McGregor’s long road to the Boston Marathon – Ottawa Sun

At some point during Stuart McGregor’s frustrating and painful 18-month recovery from the five leg surgeries he had after being hit by an SUV during a 2005 training session, the elite Paralympic middle-distance runner received some disturbing news.

Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Steven Papp told the three-time Paralympic medallist from Ottawa he’d never be able to run a marathon.

For the next seven years, McGregor, who is visually impaired with retinitis pigmentosa and has less than 10 per cent sight, slowly kick-started his running career on the track. Despite hundreds of rounds of physiotherapy, all the medical interventions had zapped his finishing kick.

As hard as he tried, he was never able to regain his former international status. The accident, which also injured Ottawa Paralympic star runner Jason Dunkerley, left McGregor with nerve and tendon damage in his toes and knee and a limp when he ran.

There was no more bite to his final attack.

In 2012, after missing the demanding Canadian “A” team qualifying time standard for the London Paralympics five times, each occasion by less than half a second, he retired as a high-performance runner. Instead, he focused on his family and became a recreational, summertime runner.

Five years later, though, a switch was flipped.

“I got sick of everyone else being a good athlete. I missed the feel of being in really good shape and having goals. I wanted to return,” said McGregor, an elementary school teacher and a personal and team sports trainer.

“I’m older and I love to run. I could have run masters (30-and-older) events, but I had no interest to be on the track, and I’m not good doing exercise for the sake of exercise. I wanted to run when I wanted to run. It keeps me motivated and competitive. I compete against myself and my own goals.”

Unable to commit to regular training with his former club, the Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club, or coach Ray Elrick, McGregor decided to become a one-man operation and stare danger in its face by tackling the marathon, the race he wasn’t supposed to run.

Now 40, McGregor first attempted the marathon in 2017, but his good intentions fell apart before he reached the start line.

His second marathon attempt changed, however. On his 39th birthday, when McGregor went into a restaurant and unexpectedly met former University of Western track teammate Matt Baley, an accomplished marathon runner and triathlete who became interested in McGregor’s marathon quest.

By the end of that evening, McGregor had a running coach and his goal of running a marathon was alive. Last May, McGregor finished the Scotiabank Ottawa Marathon with a time of three hours, three minutes and 44 seconds, placing 119th overall.

“(Baley) was all over my training program,” an enthusiastic McGregor said. “He taught me so much about being a marathon runner. It’s completely different than track and field. It was like a new science I was learning.

“Our wives make fun of us because we text more than we talk.”

Those text messages were landing even as McGregor was being interviewed, and Baley wanted to know the details of that evening’s run. Rightfully so. The Boston Marathon was only 26 days away at the time.

Not only did McGregor complete his first marathon last May, but his time qualified him for the Boston Marathon, the world’s oldest marathon and one of six major international marathons. He’s ecstatic about the opportunity, having recently received his red bib No. 124 and being assigned a high priority location at the start line for Monday’s race beginning in Hopkinton, Mass.: Corral 1 and Wave 1. He’ll be located right behind the elite racers.

McGregor will be one of 133 national capital region athletes — elite wheelchair competitor Josh Cassidy, 71 men and 61 women — in the field of 30,000 runners.

“It’s an honour to be with that group, especially for my second marathon,” said McGregor, who is ranked among the top five visually impaired athletes for Monday’s race. Dunkerley was the visually-impaired bronze medallist with guide Réjean Chiasson during last year’s cold and rainy 2018 Boston Marathon.

McGregor, who aims to complete the 42.195-kilometre course in less than three hours, prepared for Boston by running indoors so he could avoid the dangers of Ottawa’s horrendous 2018-19 winter. He converted his family’s single-car garage in Barrhaven into a well-lit, warm workout area. He averaged 100 kilometres a week training on a treadmill while surrounded by large banners from the 1996 (Atlanta) and 2004 (Athens) Paralympic Games.

In each of his three Paralympic Games, McGregor was called to the medal podium: 1,500 metres, silver, class T12, 1996 Atlanta; 800 metres, bronze, T13, 2000 Sydney; and 800 metres, bronze, T13, 2004 Athens. At the 2002 world championships, he earned bronze in the T13 800 metres. McGregor also competed against fully sighted athletes while winning medals at national junior and high school championships.

“Training has definitely been challenging and hard to get good quality running outdoors,” said McGregor, who teaches and coaches at Ottawa Christian School. “It has been tough to stay motivated, but my coach has designed a good program to keep me at a high level. I am in really good shape now. It depends how the treadmill (training) translates to the outdoors (performance).

“I really want to soak it in and enjoy the experience. I have watched Boston for years on TV and I know it will be a surreal experience with people cheering you on. It’s so inspirational. I wanted to be part of it. I’m not going to win the marathon, but I love to run, compete and set goals.”

ALSO IN THE NEWS:

Condon bursting with confidence following long recovery from hip surgery

GARRIOCH: There’s no shortage of work to do for Senators before training camp in September

Ottawa 67’s to enjoy another week-long break before next round of OHL playoffs