EMILIO’S MILESTONE MOMENT

Teen amputee battles pain for 5K

Emilio Dutra-Lidington steadied himself against his father’s shoulder as he approached the finish line of the Canada Army Run Sunday morning, a crowd of supporters along Booth Street calling his name and cheering on his last few steps.

The 19-year-old man, who lives with his family near Chelsea, lost his right leg after an August 2018 boating accident on a lake north of Ottawa. He also lost his fingers on his right hand.

And there he was, just over a year later, a prostheses attached to his hip, finishing the five-kilometre course on foot.

His sister, Isabella Dutra-Lidington, 17, carried a fold-up chair as they approached the finish line. They hauled the chair in case Emilio needed it on the course. He didn’t.

When the race was over, Emilio stepped into a tent outside the Canadian War Museum where his family was waiting and, finally, sat down.

It was extraordinary that he completed the full five kilometres, considering the first kilometre was physically demanding. He started to feel some pain right out of the gate.

“When I just started to walk, I did like a kilometre and it was bad. I didn’t expect it,” Emilio said after taking a round of pictures with family and friends.

“I did probably 750 metres and I was like, OK, when’s this over with? I don’t know. I just kept walking.”

Leo Dutra said his son was focused from the beginning.

“A couple hundred metres out, he started to feel the pain,” Leo said. “You just keep going and say, ‘We set out to do this.’ It wasn’t an option.”

The father made jokes along the course in an attempt to distract his kids from the long road ahead. (“My dad makes a bunch of jokes that aren’t funny,” Emilio quipped after the race).

Emilio said there was almost a disaster as he advanced on the finish line.

“Someone tried to high-five me and I almost fell, so I was pretty mad,” he said. “I was just mad that I went for it. I was in a lot of pain, obviously.”

Emilio’s mother, Jasmin Lidington, said there was nervous tension around the house leading up to the Army Run, even though her son was blocking the race from his mind.

“I’m just so proud of him, thinking about where he’s been, where he was at this time last year. The fact he can do a 5k is incredible. One kilometre is amazing. Five kilometres are out of this world,” Jasmin said.

“This is the first foray back into active life. It’s a huge, monumental day for him.”

Emilio said he did his best to avoid thinking about the Army Run in the days leading up to the event.

“I just tried to chill out. I didn’t really think about this that much, honestly,” Emilio said. “Other things I end up think about a lot always end up hurting a lot.”

Emilio hadn’t yet processed the fact that at this time last year, he was fighting for his life.

“I was in a hospital bed last year,” Emilio said.

“I haven’t actually thought about what I just did. But it is weird.”