Teen is Just like Every Other Runner on the Track Team with One Exception..

Annie Donnell runs track, maintains a 4.0 grade point average, and sings in the St. Louis Children's Choir... she's also blind.

The 16-year-old junior at Ladue High School in St. Louis, Missouri has been without her sight since birth, but has taken the disability and almost tossed it aside. Not only is she competing on her school's track team, she's running the 400 meter event, which is one of the most difficult competitions.

Annie runs with a tether that is attached to a fellow runner, who helps guide her along the way.

"The tether is connected to both of our wrists," Annie tells the Good News Blog. "She really has to match the speed that I set at the beginning. She has to mirror all my actions. When I move my left harm, she moves her left arm. It's a lot of trying to stay in synch."

Annie got into running her freshman year because she wanted to be involved in at least one sport, and there were no tryouts required to be on the track team. She also enjoys running.

While the set-up may be a challenge, the athlete says she is competitive in the field, running the 400 meter race in under two minutes along with her opponents. In her first race, she finished in one minute and 53 seconds, though she says she plans to cut that down.

"That's what we have to work on," she admits.

In addition to her athletic accomplishments, the teen is an all-star student, reading and studying by using Braille and similarly taking tests. She walks using a cane, and views the world through her other senses and descriptions given to her by her friends.

Life, for Annie, is not simple, but she barely notices anything is different. Blindness is almost an attribute, like the color of her hair.

"You really have to know where you are, and you have to be really independent, but I don't think about it that often," Annie remarks. "I really just kind of forget about it, and go about my day.

In the future, Annie hopes to get into education, as she's interested in Spanish and History. She also hopes her personal journey inspires others like her to get out into the mix.

"It's important to have people know that if they want to do something, they can do it," Annie says. "Especially people who are impaired, and don't want to get out in the community and the school; they only want to be around other people who are impaired. I like to be a part of everything."