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Blind pole vaulter medals at state meet

Danielle Elliot
Emory Rains High School's Charlotte Brown competes in the Girls 3A pole vault at the UIL State Track & Field meet, Friday, May 9, 2014, in Austin, Texas. Brown, a pole vaulter who happens to be legally blind, starts on the clap from her coach and counts her steps on her approach. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Emory Rains High School's Charlotte Brown competes in the Girls 3A pole vault at the UIL State Track & Field meet, Friday, May 9, 2014, in Austin, Texas. Brown, a pole vaulter who happens to be legally blind, starts on the clap from her coach and counts her steps on her approach. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Charlotte Brown is one incredibly determined teen. She chose a sport that many would think requires acute vision, to be able to tell where you are in relation to the ground.

If you think vision is necessary for success in pole vaulting, though, this blind Texas teen just proved you wrong. Brown earned the bronze medal at the Texas state track and field meet over the weekend by clearing the bar at 11-foot-6.

“It took me three years to get on the podium, and I finally did it,” Brown told the Associated Press. “This story … really wasn’t about me. It was about everybody that struggles with something.”

Brown was born with normal vision, but started to develop cataracts within three months, according to the A.P. Doctors were able to stabilize her vision until she was about 11 years old. She started running track around the time she was five years old; in middle school she took up pole vaulting because, she said, she wanted something "dangerous and exciting." It was around this time that her vision started deteriorating again.

Charlotte Brown's service dog, Vador, joined her at the meet, including on the medal podium. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Charlotte Brown's service dog, Vador, joined her at the meet, including on the medal podium. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Today her limited vision allows her to see various shades of light and dark. She cannot distinguish color or shape, according to her mom. In 2014 she told ESPN she sees "total black."

When competing, she counts the steps she's taken with her left foot. After seven steps, it's time to plant the pole and vault into the sky. She also relies on a small buzzer placed on the mat, that signals when it's time to vault.

This weekend she missed each of her first attempts at 10-foot and 10-foot-6, then cleared them on her second try. She cleared 11-foot and 11-foot-6 on her first attempts. Only two other competitors cleared 11-foot-6, gauranteeing Brown a medal. She missed three attempts at 11-foot-9; the eventual winner cleared 12-foot-3.

“I finally did it,” Brown said. “If I could send a message to anybody, it’s not about pole vaulting and it’s not about track. It’s about finding something that makes you happy despite whatever obstacles are in your way.”

Brown, a senior at Emory Rains High School, had made it to states the last two years, but had never earned a medal. She'll attend Purdue University next year, where her is brother is a hurdler on the track and field team. She hopes to walk on as a pole vaulter.

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Danielle Elliot is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact her at delliot@yahoo-inc.com or find her on Twitter and Facebook.