When Jean Driscoll began training for this year's Boston Marathon, she had
already achieved an unprecedented victory streak as six time champion of
the women's wheelchair division.
Her seventh win, like everything else in Driscoll's life, would not come
easy. Breaking her leg last summer threatened to bring her string of victories
to an end.
"Against the Wind," a WILL-TV documentary airing at 8 p.m. today,
tells the compelling story of Driscoll's attempt to become the first athlete
to win seven consecutive Boston Marathons.
Following the UI athlete as she battles her way back from injury, the program
examines her mental and physical preparation and the creation of the racing
chair that contributed to her victory.
The documentary was produced by Channel 12's Alison Davis and is narrated
by Kathrine Switzer, who in 1967 became the first woman to officially run
in the Boston Marathon. Switzer is now a television journalist and has followed
Driscoll's remarkable career.
Driscoll, assistant coach of the UI wheelchair track and field team, has
broken 13 world records and won a Silver Medal in the 1992 Olympic Games.
She is scheduled to compete in the Atlanta Summer Olympic Games wheelchair
exhibition race Aug. 1.
Driscoll says she hopes the documentary will give viewers a glimpse of a
sport some people have never seen before - one that is just as competitive
as cycling, running and basketball.
"I don't train six days a week for two to five hours a day to participate.
I do that because I want to get stronger. I want to win," Driscoll
said.
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