Olivia Quigley, a 24-year-old sprinter from Brookfield, WI, and a competitor at this week's Special Olympics World Games, knows a thing or two about staring down the competition. Quigley, who has autism, now faces a new foe: Stage 4 breast cancer. After five months of chemotherapy, she asked doctors to delay further treatment so she could compete in Los Angeles.
Olivia Quigley, 24, is @specialolyUSA runner. She is also battling Stage 3 breast cancer. Amazing resolve/grace. pic.twitter.com/9P9aLuhMzM
— Marty Smith (@MartySmithESPN) July 22, 2015
"I told them no matter what, I'm going to the LA World Games," said Quigley during the Opening Ceremony on Saturday. "Even if we have to put off chemotherapy until I get back. I wanted to compete in the LA World Games.”
Quigley's interview begins at the 2:04 mark:
Quigley, who works at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, will complete in a bevy of track and field events, including the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay events.
She competed in the 2014 Special Olympics USA Games in New Jersey, winning gold in the 4x100 relay, a silver in both the 100m and 200m events, and a bronze in the shot put.
"There’s no negative in me at all," Quigley said. "You can’t be negative at all."