ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Running takes a lot of skill and practice. 

“It just means to never give up and to push through the hardships, no matter how terrible things may look, they will get better eventually," said Cade Eells, a Nazareth University junior and cross country track runner.

What You Need To Know

  • Throughout Cade Eells' three years at Nazareth University, he has achieved three school records on the cross country and track teams

  • He's shown resiliency his entire life, and now that skill is being highlighted on the track field

  • Eells father explained in a Ted Talk when he was a kid that he was born without his right hand

  • Eells says he's always loved achieving people's expectations of him, especially on the basketball court as a kid
  • His goals this year will be to conquer the school record for the fastest indoor mile on the track

That’s how Cade defines resilience. It's a word he lives by.

“We won all three E8 championships last year for cross country, indoor and outdoor, which is the first time I’ve done it here, and I think it’s been a long time at Naz,” Cade said. 

He also holds the school record for the 3K, steeplechase and the sprint medley relay. This indoor season he’s hoping to conquer the fastest indoor mile record. So far during his three years on campus, he hasn’t let anything stop him. 

“I run into people who ask how I run, or they’re impressed when I run with one hand because I don’t know if you know this, but usually you only run with two legs. I don’t think having one hand contributes to that,” Cade laughed.

In a TED Talk at which he spoke almost a decade ago, Cade's father Greg Eells explained his son was born without his right hand and the unknowns were scary for him and his wife at first. However, growing up with one arm was another challenge he approached head-on. 

“I’m not going to lie, I get jitters just thinking about moments when I can prove someone wrong and break their expectations of me,” Cade said.

He says it all helped him grow to be the man he is today. 

“That extra aspect of learning how to do it as a kid, I think, contributed to being so resilient and being so hard-working," said Cade.

Resilience became a strong word to live by when he was a kid. 

“I originally learned what the word resilience meant when I was 12 because my dad did a TED Talk on it,” he said. 

During the TED Talk, his dad described him as his dad’s resilient role model because he overcomes something new every day. However, Cade never thought he’d have to overcome grief at a young age. 

When I was a junior in high school, my dad passed away and when I became a senior, I decided I wanted to get this tattoo as a memento to him because of the TED Talk and what he meant to me, and what this word meant to me," said Cade.

It was another obstacle that made him stronger and more motivated to succeed in school and on the race track. 

“At the end of the day, I’m still a person and I don’t want to be defined by my ... I won’t even call it a disability. But my, my difference. You know, my dad always said, or our family always said, that we all have problems or things we have to work on with ourselves. It’s just, you can see mine,” Cade laughed.