At 39 weeks pregnant most women (怀孕妇女) would only be thinking of racing to hospital. But not Amber Miller, who set off to run the Chicago(芝加哥)Marathon (马拉松赛) ,while expecting her second child any day.
As she neared the final stage of the race, she began to feel pain in the stomach. But the determined athlete managed to cross the finish line in 6 hours and 25 minutes.
Unbelievably the Chicago race was not even baby June's first marathon — Miller ran the Wisconsin Marathon earlier this year, four months pregnant. She also ran another marathon when she was about four months pregnant with her son, Caleb.
Although there was extra weight, the seasoned runner's time was just 3 hours off her personal best.
Miller began to feel pain near the end of the race, but she was not sure if it was labor (分娩), because she typically feels some pain when she runs while pregnant. After her race her husband drove her to Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield where she gave birth to the healthy 7 pounds, 13 ounce baby.
Miller decided to run because she and her husband had already signed up for the race. The athletic mother said she experienced an enthusiastic welcome from crowds as she ran along. But the devoted runner, who had completed eight marathons, admitted that she did get a few strange looks along the course.
"I know what I can handle. This is something I've been doing for a long time," the experienced marathon runner said.
June was born at 10:29 p.m. on Sunday night after seven hours' labor. "She's absolutely perfect," Miller said. "We are extremely happy, but very tired."
After her surprising double achievement, Miller says she is planning to take some time off to concentrate on being a fulltime mom.