When it comes to sports, competition is great and all, but a student athlete at Whitley County High School in Kentucky proved that winning isn’t everything.
As reported by Lexington NBC affiliate LEX18, after being assigned a “666” bib number, junior cross country runner Codie Thacker voluntarily withdrew her name from an upcoming regional championship citing her religious beliefs. Thacker refused to wear the satanic number as it would be a breach of her Christian faith.
“I didn’t want to risk my relationship with God and try to take that number,” Thacker told reporters.
After finding out about the number, Thacker and her coach Gina Croley made a plea with race officials to switch out her bib for another, but were denied because, according to them, it wasn’t brought to their attention that the request was due to religious beliefs.
The decision to not compete in the race marked the end of the season for Thacker, as she has no races left. She does however plan to return to the team for her senior year, hopefully with a better outcome.
[Lex18]
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