Talaya Crawford might have given up after she ran out of her right shoe at the start of Saturday’s 200-meter race. 

But instead the 7-year-old doubled back, quickly wrestled the shoe back on her foot and took off running. 

She closed the gap between her and the other runners, eventually overtaking the leader and winning the race. 

A video of Talaya’s feat, which was shared to Twitter on Sunday night, has been viewed more than 1 million times as of Monday evening.

Talaya, the daughter of Terence “Bud” Crawford, has been running with the Apollo Track Club of Omaha for about 2 years, said Shunta Paul, one of the club’s head coaches. Talaya runs the 100- and 200-meter distances. 

She’s an active kid, also participating on a drill team. Genetics might play a role in her athleticism, too, Paul added.

Saturday’s race was part of the Wings of Omaha Invitational held at Northwest High School. 

After losing her shoe, Talaya hollered for officials to stop the race, Paul said. Despite the other girls having about a 20-meter head start, Talaya kept running and joined the mix before overtaking the other runners to win the heat.

“She was just being a kid,” Paul said. “That’s Talaya. She hates to lose.” 

Coaches congratulated Talaya at the finish line, but she was embarrassed by the start-line flub, not realizing what an accomplishment it was. 

At a practice after the meet, Paul said they’ve discussed making sure shoelaces are tied and snug. But Talaya’s win has been a teaching moment for the team in other ways, too. 

“It teaches you to never give up,” Paul said. “To me, this just speaks volumes never to give up. To adults, as well, not just for kids.” 

Marquis Thomas, head coach with Wings of Omaha, said student athletes of any sport can take inspiration from Talaya’s display of “strength, guts and will.” 

“It’s just really good to see that type of will,” Thomas said. “Keep working hard, keep going and have a goal in mind. That girl’s goal was to be first and she kept that goal.” 

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Article Source: NBC Right Now