Cancer survivor runs 104 marathons after leg amputation
(NewsNation) — Jacky Hunt Broersma ran 104 marathons in 104 days.
Running a marathon is a feat few even consider, let alone running 104 in as many days. But for Hunt Broersma, “It’s been a phenomenal journey.”
Hunt Broersma is an ultramarathoner, endurance coach, mom and an amputee, having lost her leg to cancer.
She started her running journey in 2016 and has quickly added to her growing list of running accolades, building up a portfolio of firsts for female amputees in trail and ultrarunning.
She holds a few world records, too.
“When I started it, I wasn’t sure how far I’d get into it,” she said. “Just because there’s so many factors when you run with a prosthetic leg.”
For Hunt Broersma there was admittedly a little bit of disbelief she was going to be able to accomplish her running goals.
“It’s always been that when I became an amputee, you kind of get put in a box,” she said. “And it’s like, this is your new life. And we don’t expect much of you.”
She now hopes her success story inspires people to step out of their comfort zones.
“This was my way of just showing the world listen, everyone could do hard things,” she said. “You just need to kind of come out of your comfort zone a little bit and just push yourself a little bit.”
Hunt Broersma believes we all are stronger than we think we are.
“You’d be surprised,” she said. “Just kind of just see what you can do.”
You can watch the full interview with Jacky Hunt Broersma in the video player at the top of the page.