Lack of hearing doesn't stop Perrysburg High runner

Bryant Byrd, a member of the Perrysburg High School cross country team, runs with the River Runners club in Side Cut Metrotrpark in Maumee. THE BLADE/DAVE ZAPOTOSKY Enlarge | Buy This Photo

When Bryant Byrd runs, he cannot hear his competitors sneaking up behind him. He cannot hear the spectators cheering, nor his coach shouting out his mile times.

The teenager, who has lived with an unexplainable hearing loss since he was a young child, runs without the background noise, without any distractions.

“I try to run my heart out,” said Mr. Byrd, the fastest runner on the Perrysburg High School cross country team. “I’m just totally focused on my running. What I got to do to win.”

Mr. Byrd, 18, has found a niche in running, a sport where it’s a lonely battle between a runner and the time clock.

READ MORE of this story at ourtownperrysburg.com