Verzbicas back home and running

By Jeff Vorva Correspondent November 22, 2012 6:54PM
Updated: November 23, 2012 11:03AM

The trophy is about 4 inches high and 2 1/2 inches wide with a gold turkey on top of the base.

It might not be the biggest or flashiest award that 19-year-old Lukas Verzbicas has won, but it might be the most important.

The Orland Park native was one of the best runners in the nation and world before he suffered a near-death accident that left his body a wreck in July. On Thursday, he came home to run in the Orland Park Turkey Trot and finished third overall out of 750 entrants and second in his 15-to-19 age group with a time of 13 minutes, 32.6 seconds. It was his first competition since the accident.

Before July, not winning a race would be tough for Verzbicas to handle. He was full of joy on Thanksgiving just to be able to compete and win that turkey trophy.