When Sabik Kohran crossed the finish line at the Boston Marathon, he suddenly became emotional.
It wasn’t because he had just completed one of the most prestigious races in the world. It wasn’t just because he survived 26.2 miles. This was because during that race, the timeline he had envisioned for himself had entirely changed.
“It was crazy because I was like, ‘We did it,'” Cohran says. “I didn’t really know how well I was doing until the last two to three miles. Then I said, ‘Wait, we’re going to PR by 12 minutes. So finally I killed it, and when I crossed that finish line… I said, ‘Oh my God, there’s no way.'”
There were many emotions during the race. As the mile markers passed, so did the personal records. Cohran saw his 10-mile and half-marathon PRs set. As much as life has been for him, he has kept his head up and kept moving forward.
For two-legged amputee Cohan of the Chicago area, who was born without shin and ankle bones, the Boston Marathon wasn’t just another race. It was proof that the ceiling he had once imagined for himself no longer existed.
grow without limits
Both of Cohran’s legs were amputated at the age of two and he was given prosthetics at the age of four. There was no voice of sympathy inside his house. There was perspective.
“My mother and grandmother always reiterated that you can’t change it. It’s who you are,” he says. “So I’ve always had the mentality of, ‘Nobody’s going to come save you.’ You’ve got to do it yourself.'”
This mentality shaped his approach to sports as he grew up. He was not interested in sitting on the sidelines or being treated differently. At Schaumburg High School, he played football, wrestled, played lacrosse and basketball, and stayed active any way he could. There was no limit.
However, ironically, running was not initially part of that identity. In fact, he spent most of his younger years avoiding it whenever possible.
“I’ve never run other than lacrosse,” Cohran says, laughing. “I’d say, ‘Yeah, I don’t have legs, so I can’t run these laps. ‘I always get myself out somehow.”
His life changed when he finally received running prosthetics in October 2024 after years of wishing. And it changed everything.
Running is more than fitness
Cohran says that like many people who get involved in endurance sports later in life, the miles eventually became much more than exercise.
“Running restored my youth,” he says. “Not that I felt like I was missing anything, but I always felt like I knew I could be fast. You see people with these prostheses and I knew I could be fast, too.”
Once they got access to walking blades, they never looked back. The running community immediately embraced him, especially when he finished the Chicago Marathon in under four hours during his first attempt.
Cohran did not know how well he was performing and did so until others were surprised by the fact that it was his first marathon. However, what surprised him most wasn’t the attention. The surprise was the effect it had.
He remembered receiving a message from a physical therapist who brought in a patient who had recently lost his leg in a race. The man was in low spirits, but he brightened up after seeing and hearing about Cohran’s accomplishments.
Such moments changed the way he handled himself.
“You have to approach every moment in public with some restraint,” he says. “You never know who’s watching and might be inspired by what you’re doing.”
Pain
While Cohran’s story seems inspiring on the outside, the physical side of marathon training can sometimes be brutal.
Before the Chicago Marathon, he trained in prosthetics that weren’t designed for long-distance running. The accumulation of sweat inside the binders caused constant pain and instability.
“I had to clean my feet every two to three miles,” he says. “I’m saying my feet were bleeding. I would have to walk around the house.”
There were moments when despair overcame him because there simply had to be a different way. Eventually, doctors adjusted the fit, added padding, and introduced anti-perspirant sprays that changed everything.
“The Chicago Marathon was my first race; I didn’t have to stop at all,” he says. “First official race, honestly.”
It took some time to get used to the moving blades. The first time he ran over them, he realised something almost immediately: he didn’t know how to stop.
“The first time I ran I started screaming,” he says. “I was like, ‘I could die on this sidewalk.’ ”
Conditioning became another major adjustment. Unlike the sports he participated in throughout high school, distance running required continuous output without breaks, which forced him to learn pacing almost entirely through trial and error. His longest run before the Chicago Marathon was about four miles.
Now, as mileage has increased and marathon times have rapidly decreased, Cohran’s goals have evolved just as quickly.
He still hasn’t finished dreaming
At 27, Cohran already has his sights set on bigger stages and bigger achievements. One of them is to run all the major marathons in the world by the time you reach your mid-30s.
But there is another goal that is making it even more difficult.
“Double amputee world record,” he says. “I want that record. I’m definitely coming for that record.”
The current world record sits at 2:40:25, and while Cohran knows how ambitious that sounds, he has never lowered his expectations.
“Many people want to call 27 old,” he says, “but LeBron got his first ring at 27.”
Beyond racing, he hopes running and content creation will eventually become his full-time focus. Currently, he balances training, social media and his day job at Dick’s Sporting Goods, often stretching his week to nearly 70 hours.
He keeps thinking about putting more effort into his running and creating content to inspire others. He would also like to start a run club and give some public speaking. More than anything, he wants people to see possibilities when they look at him.
“If they can look at me and say, ‘Okay, he’s doing that. I can do that too. I want that too,’ Cohran says. “Running teaches you to trust and believe in yourself. At this point I have 100 percent confidence and trust in everything I do. And running helped me achieve that.”
