With the Olympics coming to an incredible finish, all eyes will be on the Paralympic Games in Paris next week and then the Special Olympic Winter Games in Turino, Italy early next year.

While New York state is expected to have a big presence at those games, one North Country man is doing everything he can to ensure it.

He’s about to embark on the run of a lifetime and raise a lot of money with each step.

What You Need To Know

  • Lt. Shaun Cuddeback of the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office plans to run seven marathons in seven days next week, to raise money for Special Olympics New York

  • Cuddeback will be the lone representative for law enforcement in New York state as he helps bring the Law Enforcement Torch to the Special Olympics Winter Games in Torino, Italy next year

  • New York state is expected to have 15 or so athletes compete in those games, and Cuddeback is running to raise $30,000, which is enough to send three of the athletes to the games

One full marathon is 26.2 miles.

“So, I know this is not an easy chore for me to do,” Jefferson County Sheriff’s Lt. Shaun Cuddeback said.

Seven marathons is 183.4 miles.

“There's only about 2% of the population of the world that ever runs a marathon,” he added.

Cuddeback is part of that 2%.

“I’m 53," he said. "I'm no spring chicken, but I know that through the training, I really think that I'm in the best physical shape that I've been in my life at this point."

That's why Cuddeback is about to do something only a small fraction of that 2% can even dream of.

“I plan on running 26.2 miles a day for seven days,” he said while running.

Cuddeback plans to run seven marathons in seven days, those 183.4 miles will all be for an amazing cause.

The medals and photos in his office share the story.

"In 2023, I ran a New York City marathon to support Special Olympics New York," he said.

Cuddeback has been a part of the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics for 15 years now. It's organization and people changed his life.

“I went to my first Winter Games in Syracuse and the high five line, that was just it was it for me,” Cuddeback said.

He had found a second calling.

“It’s such a loving community and to bring me into that community, and to show how much they care about what we do," Cuddeback said. "That was that."

Cuddeback's passion has allowed him to be selected as the sole law enforcement representative for the games from New York state. He’ll be a part of the final leg of the law enforcement torch run when it finds its way to Turin, Italy, in March of next year for the Special Olympics Winter Games.

“I’m going to be one-on-one with people that are representing the world," he said. "I mean, it's from every country around the world and I get to be one of those guys that's there."

But he will not be going alone. New York state has about 15 athletes who have qualified for these games. However, the cost to get them there, to compete and bring them home is about $10,000 each.

“My goal is to raise enough money to pay for at least three of those athletes to go over,” Cuddeback said.

183.4 miles.

“I said, ‘Well, what can I do that's a little over the top that most people do’ and this is what I want to do, [run] seven marathons in seven days," he said.

It's a journey that begins this coming Monday.

You can find more information on Cuddeback's efforts to raise money by clicking here.