Canadian middle distance runner Kate Van Buskirk finally back on track
TORONTO — When Kate Van Buskirk won the women’s 3,000 metres at the historic Millrose Games, it was a victory that went way beyond crossing the line first.
The 29-year-old runner from Brampton, Ont., is finally feeling healthy and fit after two years of battling spondyloarthropathy, a crippling condition that left her unable to even roll over in bed, let alone roar down a track. Optimism has replaced all the doubts about her future, and now Van Buskirk looks forward to battling for a spot on Canada’s team for the world track and field championships this summer.
“I’m genuinely feeling like winning races and running fast times are incredible and definitely a part of why we do this, but if I had come seventh and run a bit slower, but felt the way that I had felt on Saturday, I would’ve been just as happy,” Van Buskirk said. “Because I feel like I’m a runner again.”
Van Buskirk won bronze in the 1,500 metres at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, but her running went south soon after. What started as a torn hamstring tendon turned into a “year and a half of pain and discomfort,” and she was finally diagnosed with spondyloarthropathy, a chronic condition in the arthritis family that results in inflammation in the joints of her lower back, hips and pelvis.