Teen Finishes Chicago Marathon Less Than a Year After Being Paralyzed

A teenager from Louisville, Kentucky, overcame some huge odds and completed the 2026 Chicago Marathon this past weekend.

I've run a half marathon before, and it was one of the most physically challenging things I've ever done. I can't imagine what Wyatt Anderson had to overcome just to get ot the starting line in Chicago.

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Teen Runs Chicago Marathon Less Than a Year After Paralysis

Anderson finished the Chicago Marathon less than a year after a devastating basketball accident left him paralyzed from the neck down.

Just last November, Anderson was diving for a loose basketball when he collided head-first with a wall at a community center in Louisville, leaving him with a serious spinal cord injury.

Wyatt Anderson's Remarkable Recovery From Spinal Cord Injury

After undergoing extensive rehabilitation, therapists helped him progress from being unable to walk to eventually running again.

Less than five months after the injury, Anderson ran a half marathon in under two hours and, just this past weekend, competed in the Chicago Marathon with his brother as part of a fundraising effort for the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, finishing in less than four hours, according to reports.

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Running the Chicago Marathon for a Bigger Purpose

Anderson told WLKY, "If I'm having like a hard mile or something, I just like think about running for those people that are trying to recover."

Chicago Marathon organizers said nearly 55,000 runners registered; every person had a reason for being there.

For Anderson, just being able to run again was an accomplishment. Finishing 26.2 miles less than a year after being paralyzed is something else entirely.