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Perron's agonizing finish

E-mail|Link|Comments (11) Posted by Chris Forsberg, Boston.com Staff November 19, 2008 07:52 AM

Rarely does the 144th finisher in the boys' Division 1 all-state cross-country finals end up as the top headline from the season's top meet, but allow our friends at the Worcester Telegram & Gazette to explain...

It’s one of the most courageous, heart-wrenching finishes you’ll see at any level of sports, from pee-wees to professionals.
Need a little inspiration today? Check out the photos and video of St. John’s High runner Ben Perron and his agonizing final 50 meters or so at Saturday’s State Cross Country Championships in Boston.

Suffering from what was later determined to be severe dehydration, the 16-year-old junior from Southboro fell several times while coming down the home stretch of the 5-kilometer Franklin Park course, crawling on all fours, trying to get up, falling flat on his face, and eventually rolling across the finish line while emotional fans cried, cheered and exhorted him on.

For the record, Perron wound up 144th out of 146 finishers. He was believed to be somewhere in the top 30, and leading the Pioneers’ contingent, before his muscles began failing him. He was seen by his sister grabbing the back of his thighs as he rounded the final turn heading into the home straightaway, and he fell for the first time shortly after that with about 60 meters to go.

What followed was an emotional, gutsy performance that had to be seen to be believed. After stumbling and falling, Perron rolled over and returned shakily to his feet, only to fall backward as though he were drunk. Officials ran over and checked on him from several feet away.

“I don’t remember it perfectly, but I pretty much remember most of it,” said Perron, who continued to crawl on his hands and knees, almost tipping over at one point. “I definitely was conscious the whole time. I knew what was going on.

“I was surprised that I couldn’t even stand up. I kept moving — there wasn’t really a choice. I just kept working.”

Teammate Cam Tieuli, a St. John’s captain, tried to grab his arm and help him up as he came by, but quickly stopped, realizing any assistance would result in disqualification. Another teammate, Dan Zawalich, patted Perron on the back as he passed by to offer encouragement. Perron was still probably 20 meters from the finish line.

Hop over to Telegram.com for the complete article.

What's your take? Should his teammates or other runners have helped him out? Leave you thoughts in our comments section.

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11 comments so far...

Being a CC runner myself back in high school I understand what he was going through. The runners , coaches and officials did the correct thing and allowed him to finish. It's what every runner wants. I remember my 1st Boston Marathon and how it felt to cross that line. The feeling is indescribable. Congrats Mr. Perron on your personal victory. You made your teammates, family and friends all so very proud.

Posted by Tide Runner November 19, 08 09:37 AM

Im his teammate and i found it interesting that all the girls i talked to were very emotional, yet all the boys were remarking on the epic-ness of his finish.
I turly believe that if i had half the determination ben has, i would be a better runner.
oh well

Posted by Lynchy November 20, 08 02:07 PM

That type of effort is what Cross Country is all about. A committed, dedicated, disciplined young man who demonstrated courage and determination. If he doesn't grow up to be a sucessful adult I will be very surprised. His family and coach must be very proud of him as I.m sure all coaches who love the sport will understand. Congratulations to him his family, team, coach and the sport. ----------------------------

Posted by Harry Allen November 21, 08 01:01 PM

WIMP!!!!! RUN LIKE A MAN, DON'T CRAWL

Posted by Elpresidente November 26, 08 11:26 AM

I agree it was courageous, BUT I think the officials/coaches should have got the EMT to him after the couldn't get up a couple of times. Years ago I coached in a soccer game with 1st place at stake and near the end of the game our goalie got his bell rung in a collision and came out of the game, he was definitely out of it but begged me to go back in and gave in and I put him back in. We won the game but I always regretted putting him back in because if he had a concussion and ended up really getting hurt I would have felt awful. This runner obviously had severe dehydration and that can be dangerous, he should have received medical attention sooner.

Posted by CoachT December 3, 08 08:41 AM

I've suffered from dehydration several times in or after races, receiving EMT attention afterwards. Most memorable was the Duluth Marathon (70 degrees, no shade, 90% humidity), where my lower back muscles could no longer hold me erect. I stumbled and fell, waved off some concerned people, and stumbled and crawled the last 25 yards to the finish. Then they packed me in ice and gave me nearly 4 liters of intravenous fluids. The lesson Ben Perron should take away from this is to know that he will always be very competitive and very prone to dehydration in the future. Be careful to find and drink the right balance of fluids and electrolytes on warm days. Great focus, and good luck.

Posted by Alex Magoun December 7, 08 12:29 PM

this is the worst article/ video i have ever seen, this is not impressive, and the kid should be shunned from runnning ever again, clearly putting on a show, and im pissed at how terrible his interview was, he acts like the man for finishing and that it was other kids fault that he wasnt helped better, its his own fault for being out of shape / dehydrated ....drink up my friend ur better than this

Posted by tommy d December 9, 08 12:45 PM

As a good friend of the family, I have known Ben for many years. Anyone making a negative comment here is completely insane. Ben is - and always has been - an unbelievably dedicated and humble (despite his repeated record-breaking successes) athlete. He is the kid who spends many of his off-hours running (instead of playing with his brothers and friends) or spends 2 hours chipping golf balls into a net (when he could be watching tv or playing video games) just to tweak a bit more improvement. I congratulate Ben on his spirit (although I think it was nuts that he wasn't helped earlier) and his persistence. We could all learn a lesson from Ben's determination.

Posted by Dave March 11, 09 08:42 AM

Dave- thanks for comments. Tommy - you are clueless. Alex- good advice. Coach T- exactly right. Elpresidente-I'll bet you are an impressive , successful individual NOT. and Ben's comments about if the tables were turned he would have helped his teammate regardless. its what families/teammates do.

Posted by kathy March 11, 09 08:11 PM

Tommy...I was there. I'm BP's former Captain. I was yelling to him to Crawl. and coach looked at me like " Are you trying to get this kid killed?!" the whole point of this is that he had finished! I saw a red Giant come to a screeching halt and just collapse. I saw a man who could barley even lift his face out of the mud. I saw a man give everything he could to show the world never to give up. Thats what we should get out of this...not to make sure we drink lots of fluids(though as an athlete it is important) but to finish with heart. Ben thank you

Posted by Brian May 23, 09 09:16 AM

Tommy, if this kid was banned from running, my team would be screwed forever.

I do go to SJ, and I'm on the XC team. No, I wasn't actually at this race (this was a varsity race, and I'm somewhere at the front of the JV team), but judging from the video...I mean, really, draw the line. Everyone there was cheering him on, but really. He was down for the count. Someone should have helped. Who cares about disqualification at that point. When someone is face down in mud, struggling to crawl 30 meters, it's really time to do something.

Posted by Timmy D September 12, 09 09:16 PM

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