Kade Lovell wasn't setting out to win a 10K race. He actually wasn't even planning to run it.
But maybe fate had other plans for the boy who has been running races since he was 18 months old.
Kade was planning to run the St. Francis Fanny Flyer 5K on Saturday, September 21, in Sartell, Minnesota. But a wrong turn left the 9-year-old boy running the 10K race instead.
"Then I did, like, at the end where you had to turn around, there's a 10K sign," Kade told WCCO. "I was like, this is not a 5K. Once I turned around I was like, 'my mom is going to yell at me.' "
But his mom, Heather Lovell, wasn't mad. She was just terrified about where her son went. She grew worried when she didn't see Kade at the finish line for the 5K race.
"OK, I should be seeing him by now, but I don't," Lovell told WCCO. "I have to run up to the finish line and I'm freaking out, I'm crying. My son is nowhere to be found, we have to go find him."
But then she found out what actually happened. Instead of running the 5K route, Kade had continued running ahead, leading him to the 10K race — doubling his distance to about 6.2 miles.
Even more impressive than the 9-year-old's distance was his time. Kade finished the race in just over 48 minutes, and took home the gold.
"I was like what? I have a 10K medal," Kade said. "I won on accident."
Kade didn't just place first for his age group. He placed first in the race overall, beating out the adults who were also running.
"I go from freaking out, to mad, to excited, to happy for him," Kade's mom said. "It was like an emotional roller coaster in a 10-minute span."
