Tommy Des Brisay, 22, was diagnosed with autism at an early age, but that hasn’t stopped him from winning countless racing medals or from clocking a half-marathon race time of 1:14:55.
But Tommy will be lacing up on Ottawa Race Weekend for his first ever marathon. And despite the much longer course, his focus remains the same as it has been since he first started running eight years ago.
“Determined to win the race, win my age category,” said Tommy.
Tommy wasn’t always an athlete.
When he was five years old, experts told his parents, MaryAnn Given and Peter Des Brisay, that he may never develop the ability to speak.
By the time he was 14 years old, he was overweight as a result of medication he was taking, and his parents wanted to find an interest for him to pursue.
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