Elite Runner Kara Goucher Steps Out to Support Dystonia
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As a champion runner, Kara Goucher has learned to never give up. And it’s this same determination that she’s leaning into for her battle against dystonia, a little-known neurological disorder that causes painful and prolonged muscle contractions that result in abnormal movements and postures.
Goucher has dystonia in her lower left leg, and although she still runs when it’s less painful, “it’s not like I used to,” she says. The athlete was the silver medalist in the 10,000 meters at the 2007 World Championships and represented the U.S. in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics.
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The disease causes her to lose function in her leg and not feel the ground when she lands — devastating for any elite athlete. But despite being told by a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic that she would never run again, she’s working with another doctor in her hometown in Colorado to manage the symptoms enough to still participate in her sport — albeit recreationally at a slower pace and at shorter distances. She also said she takes a Parkinson’s Disease drug and is going for Botox injections every three months. “It’s not perfect, but it helps,” she said.
Goucher was in New York with her shoe sponsor, Altra, to meet — and lead a mat workout — with editors at the Michael J. Fox Foundation. The event, called A Morning for Hope, was to celebrate the launch of the Paradigm 7 shoe, which was created in Goucher’s chosen colorway of orange and blue. But more important, $5 from the sale of every shoe will be donated to the Bachmann-Strauss Fellowship in Dystonia Research, a training program under the Michael J. Fox Foundation umbrella that studies the movement disorder.
Some 500,000 people in North America suffer from the disease, including 30 percent of all Parkinson’s patients.
At the breakfast, Altra also presented a check for $50,000 to the Bachmann-Strauss organization in her honor.
Goucher, who was formerly a Nike-sponsored runner under disgraced coach Alberto Salazar, wrote a book about her experiences with the sports giant called: “The Longest Race: Inside the Secret World of Abuse, Doping and Deception on Nike’s Elite Running Team,” that chronicles her experiences with the company.
On Tuesday, Goucher said she cherishes her relationship with Altra because the company recognizes the “bigger story, that people are people. Running fast is inspiring but people are more than just results.”
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