CATLIN, IL. (WAND) -- Gary Spezia is a hurdling expert, teaching kids from all across Central Illinois how to hurdle and run properly over the last 25 years.Â
Spezia doesn't charge his kids a penny for his knowledge or efforts. He just asks for something in return, hoping that one day, these same kids will teach others to do what he's shown them to do.
However, his knowledge and dedication to the sport isn't what people see first when they first look upon Spezia. It's the sight of his wheelchair, his hands turning a pair of wheels to move wherever he wants to go.Â
Spezia misses being able to walk, but he misses more being able to compete, as he was an all-conference athlete in four different high school sports before going to play college basketball at a small school in northern Minnesota.Â
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A hunting accident at the age of 26 would change everything though. It would create the question of how a man in a wheelchair, who's coached 20 state championships in the past 25 years, teaches kids to do what he can no longer do.Â
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