CHICAGO (CBS) — The Bank of America Chicago Marathon is three days away, but a West Loop doctor was one of thousands of runners who took part in another marathon last week: in Berlin.
Dr. Eliza Pierko not only finished with her personal best time, but she also helped save a life along the way.
For Pierko, a sports medicine specialist at Loyola Medicine, running and helping others have always been two great passions.
She had suffered an ankle fracture just two years ago, which required surgery and months of rehabilitation. Traveling to Germany last week to run the BMW Berlin Marathon marked her comeback.
“So I’ve done the Chicago course a few times, so I really wanted to do other majors — and Berlin was one of them,” Pierko said.
Despite some hiccups at the start, including arriving late to the race, Pierko got off at the Brandenburg Gate and quickly hit her stride.
“I felt great. I was flying,” she said. “It was my race.”
But then, after 33 kilometers, Pierko’s attention was diverted.
“I saw a runner lying on the ground, and the person didn’t look like he just slipped and fell,” Pierko said. “He was lying on his side and not moving.”
Like flipping a switch. Pierko sprang into action, putting her comeback on hold and taking care of the stranger.
“To me, he started turning blue and stopped breathing,” she said. “I turned him onto his back and had just enough time to scream that he was in cardiac arrest, and I started compressions.”
With the help of bystanders, Pierko led the attempt at what turned out to be life-saving CPR for the man until paramedics arrived.
But as with everything, there were obstacles, including a major language barrier.
“When the defibrillator arrived, all the commands were in German,” Pierko said. “That was definitely a surprise.”
Now that the man was stable, Pierko made the decision to finish the race. Her husband captured the moment she runs to him to tell him what happened.
Despite the speed bump, Pierko not only completed the marathon, but also improved her own personal record.
She hopes her experience resonates with others and inspires them to go a step further.
“Be a good person and help those in need,” she said. ‘Come over. If you don’t know what to do, call for help.’
The condition of the man Pierko rescued remains unclear. Although she was unable to contact him after the race, she was able to find him on social media.
Pierko said the goal is to reunite with the man she saved in the near future.
