Sister Rosemary Sherman, known locally as "the Running Nun", was one of the runners selected to carry the Olympic torch as it was carried to Salt Lake City for the 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Olympic Torch Relay
By Sister Rosemary Sherman
It is difficult to describe all the events involved with this Olympic Torch Relay event that I was part of December 31, 2001. It was humbling and also very, very amazing.
Amazing because I was one of the 13,500 across the USA who was chosen. Amazing because the stories of so many others seemed so inspiring. Amazing because "training" for 2/10 of a mile is unreal!
We've all been there - that 2/10 of a mile after 26 miles...finishing a 5k's 1/10 of a mile and walking in a chute for at least another 1/10 of a mile! Looking for water, food, friends, family, a place to sit down!!
Ah, but this 2/10 was very, very different. I wasn't at all tired, even though I barely slept the night before. I wasn't thirsty, but felt a severe case of "dry mouth" the moment I stepped off the van. I wasn't jockeying for position, even though I had a support runner on each side of me - they knew to stay far enough away from me!
I was very humbled, not by the finishing clock or someone draping a medal around my neck or wrapping me in a foil cloak or some remark made as I crossed the finish line. I was very humbled by the large number of people who turned out at my relay point to see this very special event. Where else could you see a large group of runners, mostly CATS Track Club folks, amid a large number of Sisters of Mercy, my family members, co-workers and just folks who came out to see the Olympic event??? With such support, my fears of falling down, having the flame go out (it was windy!!), getting burned, not being able to get the torch lit or not being able to pass the flame on all faded, much like the sun, setting in the West right ahead of me!
I am no Joan Benoit Samuelson (I know that I still think I resemble her somehow, but that is part of my sick mind that my brother will be happy to tell you all about sometime) running through the tunnel into the LA Coliseum! Yet, I did think to myself, as she did, "my life will never be the same again!" And that is the truest statement I've ever heard, said or believed in all my 50+ years! For anyone who was there, or saw the flame on tv or print media, our lives cannot be the same because now, the flame has touched our lives. That flame and the Olympic spirit it engenders calls us all to "light the fire within" (the Olympic theme of the torch relay). The fire of love, hope and forgiveness. The fire that shows us how very much each one of us is probably qualified to be an inspiring person who should have been chosen to carry that torch! Life is way too short to not start loving, hoping and forgiving! I may be a runner, but I'm also a Nun and with that, my "preaching" is done. For now.
I have yet to meet a runner I didn't like, though I admit there are times when I have to think a bit about it and not review race manners in my head too much. We all have regrets and complaints, but we all also have the flame within!
— Sr. Rosemary Sherman, RSM "the Running Nun"
Copyright © 2002 Sr. Rosemary Sherman