Heart attack in 2021 only delays runner’s finish
Kornieck walks what had remained of half marathon
One of the most dramatic finishes this weekend at the 2022 Free Press Marathon was for the half marathon
The 2021 half marathon.
The finisher, Tommy Kornieck of Port Huron, now 27, suffered a heart attack and collapsed near the 10-mile mark of last year’s 13.1mile race. Only through the quick actions of nearby runners, who administered CPR, as well as race day medical volunteers, paramedics, Detroit police and doctors and nurses at Henry Ford Hospital did he survive — and just barely.
Doctors estimate that his heart was stopped for nearly 20 minutes, which is deep into the danger zone. Yet miraculously, Kornieck suffered no long-term neurological impairments, and aside from having a defibrillator implant and needing to take beta blockers, he can expect a relatively normal life.
On Sunday, he finished the portion of the race that he couldn’t last year.
Event organizers made room for Kornieck to join the U.S. half marathon at the 10-mile mark. Accompanied by his mother, Dawn Carrier, he completed those final three miles. He and his mother walked together for most of the distance, although Kornieck made a sprint for the finish in the final straightaway, which he said felt good.
Waiting for them at the end were friends and family members, plus one of the Henry Ford
Hospital nurses who rushed to Kornieck’s aid last year as a race day volunteer.
“It felt really good,” Kornieck said in the finish
chute. “I‘m just happy to be done with it — finally after a year.”
Moments after crossing the finish line, Kornieck
was spotted and hugged by Maggie Murphy, a Henry Ford emergency room nurse who rode with him in the ambulance to the hospital a year ago.
“I really didn’t expect it to turn out this well. I don’t think anybody did. This is really remarkable, it’s a miracle,” Murphy said of Kornieck’s recovery. “The survivability of something like this is extremely low. And (for him) to be fully functional!
She added, “The bystanders recognizing he was in cardiac arrest, and then jumping into action immediately, that made the difference I believe.”
Doctors have given Kornieck medical clearance to run up to 5 kilometers (3.1 miles), although he tires quickly because of his medication and is still working up to that level.
“I can run maybe a couple minutes at a time, but I have to walk in between,” he explained.
Doctors suspect that Kornieck is genetically predisposed to a type of abnormal heart rhythm induced by exercise, known as idiopathic ventricular fibrillation. Prior to the heart attack, he had no known health problems or cardiology issues.
Kornieck graduated last month from a physician assistant program at Central Michigan University and is living at home right now while making plans for the future.
His mother said it was very emotional for her to accompany her son for those final 3 miles.
“It feels good. It needed to be done,” she said. “He’s a fighter. He didn’t stay down long; he came right back.”