Source: Radio New Zealand
Sam Ruthe and Tamahau Hicks celebrate their 1500m performane at Tauranga. Facebook/Emily Kay
Disappointment turned to delight for a 12-year-old visually impaired athlete Tamahau Hicks, when running sensation Sam Ruthe came to his rescue at the Colgate Games in Tauranga on Saturday.
The disappointment came when Tamahau’s regular running guide contacted his family to say he was ill and couldn’t accompany Tamahau over the 1500 metres at the event, which has attracted thousands of North Island youngsters for the three-day meeting.
Tamahau, who runs for the Te Aroha Athletics Club and Achilles Tauranga Moana, suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident, when he was three-and-a-half, affecting his vision and spatial awareness.
Because of that, he needs a guide to run alongside him in races.
“We rushed around trying to find someone and when I couldn’t, I stuck out a post on Run Aotearoa,” Tamahau’s mum, Emily Kay, said.
Andrea Neal from Tauranga Athletics saw the Facebook post and got in touch.
Initially, an official was to guide Tamahau, but 30 minutes before the race, there was another development.
“Andrea came and found us, and said, ‘Hey, Sam Ruthe has volunteered to become a host guide for the race’.
“We were very excited. I know Tamahau was, when he found out Sam was going to be his guide.
“All the other kids were excited they would be in the same race as Sam Ruthe too.”
Ruthe is the rising track star of New Zealand athletics. He was 15, when he became [https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/sport/545352/watch-teen-runner-sam-ruthe-breaks-record-sub-four-minute-mile the youngest runner to break four minutes for the mile last March.
Since turning 16, he has shattered the long-standing secondary schools 1500 metre record and claimed new U20 and U19 national marks over 1000 metres last weekend, with his time being the world’s best for his age.
Emily Kay couldn’t speak highly enough of Ruthe.
“It was really incredible,” she said. “He was really good, he told Tamahau, ‘Don’t go out too hard, we’ll go hard in the last lap’, and that is exactly what they did.
“They just stuck to the same pace right throughout the race until right at the end. It was amazing and the whole crowd was cheering.”
They proved a winning combination.
“He broke his personal best by about 40 seconds and he came first in the para race. It was pretty awesome.”
Ruthe was also great with the other kids in the race, posing for photos with them for ages after the race.
There was one funny moment in the race, as Ruthe, in his enthusiasm, went ahead of Tamahau and had to be reminded that his partner had to cross the finish-line first.
Emily Kay said Tamahau would have had to withdraw, if he hadn’t found a guide.
“Not only did he get a guide, he got Sam Ruthe.
“It was an epic day.”
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
