The winner may not necessarily be the person who crosses the finish line first, even if they may be awarded the prize for being the fastest.

This was proven to be the case most recently at a 5K invitational that took place in Shelbyville, Indiana.

The injury occurred after Western Boone High School junior Levi LaGrange tripped and twisted his ankle with less than a half mile to go in the race.

“As I was going up this modest hill with its sloping topography… ‘and I turned my ankle and felt something go ‘snap,'” he explained to the Indy Star at the time.

Axel Aleman, a senior at Sheridan High School, noticed that LaGrange was signaling for someone else to pass him, but at that very moment, the race was no longer Aleman’s primary worry.

Aleman remembers thinking, “I was able to perceive that he was in quite a lot of suffering.” “As I approached him, I noticed that he was limping… I was concerned and asked him how he was doing.

He claimed he felt like something snapped.”

Aleman displayed an incredible act of real sportsmanship when he chose not to go ahead with the race and instead decided to leave LaGrange behind. Aleman remarked, “As soon as I saw him, I knew I had to do something.”

“There was no question in my mind that this was the correct action to do. That was more important than winning the race. I assured him that I wasn’t planning on moving anywhere.

Aleman continued to run beside LaGrange for the remainder of the race, during which he offered his rival some moral support by placing a hand on his back.

The two athletes crossed the finish line just a few seconds apart from one another. Aleman even made sure LaGrange went first.

In light of the fact that Aleman and Becky LaGrange’s mother had never interacted with one another before, Becky was more than a little bit taken aback by Aleman’s nice gesture.

She replied, “It takes a lot for an 18-year-old to give up his seat,” which translates to “it takes a lot of effort.” “Axel never left his side.

It gives a lot of insight into Axel’s personality. In light of everything that’s going wrong in the world right now, it was a truly inspiring display of sportsmanship.

Nikki, Aleman’s mother, was not in the least bit taken aback by the spontaneous act of generosity that her son displayed.

She remarked that he is a truly kind person, and that he is constantly more concerned about others than he is about himself.

Aleman received a great deal of favorable feedback after tales of the occurrence began to circulate on social media and began to be shared by others.

In spite of the fact that he may have taken pleasure in the praises bestowed upon him for his achievements, the lesson he took away was one of straightforward compassion and understanding.

You have two options when you come to a fork in the road: you can choose to act in your own self-interest, or you can choose to go the additional mile to help someone else who is in need.

The decision was simple and obvious for this teenage athlete.

Even while we might not always be able to notice when life is offering us a chance for grace, Axel Aleman once said that whenever such an occasion presents itself, he “would simply truly hope people do the right thing.” That is correct.