A Minnesota woman whose lifelong dream is to finish the Boston Marathon is planning to run the race this year, despite being given a terminal cancer diagnosis.
Elinor Scott, 50, came close last year but never got to the finish line because of the two bombs that went off, causing three deaths and hundreds of injuries.
Now she’s refusing to let a diagnosis of stage four pancreatic cancer rob her of her dream of finishing the marathon and plans to finish what she came so close to accomplishing last year.
Life goal: Scott’s dream is to finish the Boston Marathon
Scott began running five years ago after a series of health problems and quickly became addicted.
‘It’s provided me community, health, happiness, all the things you get from something like church,’ Scott told CBS.
After she began running, she set a goal: completing the Boston Marathon.
Last year, the mother of four was about three-quarters of a mile from the finish line when two bombs went off, leaving death and destruction in their wake.
Determined: Even if she can only ‘run slow,’ Scott just wants to cross the finish line
Running religion: Scott began running five years ago and fell in love with it
Scott was horrified for the victims of the blasts, but also crestfallen that the bombings had robbed her of her dream.
‘I was disappointed on a personal level, because I didn’t know if I would have it in me to qualify again,’ Scott said.
She has been too weak to train, but Scott’s goal remains, even if she’s now also racing against time.
‘They tell you what they’re going to tell you about stage IV cancer. They don’t really offer you any promises,’ she said.
Scott’s family are with her every step of the way.
‘I’m very proud of my mom through everything she’s been through, everything she’s overcome,’ said her daughter Martha Sutter.
Elinor Scott intends to be in Boston on April 21 for the 118th Boston Marathon.
