War wound fails to keep disabled vet from running relay

Countryside Woods — Army Capt. Leonard “Chip” Sell ran his three legs of the Hood to Coast relay the best he could with shrapnel still embedded in his lower right leg. Sell was part of a 12-member team of disabled veterans, Team Warfighter Sports, that participated in the 200-mile race. To prepare for the event, Sell, who was wounded in Iraq in a mortar attack in 2003, cycled, walked, swam and paddled. Sell has been in the military more than 22 years. He believes getting involved in sports is an important part of wounded service members’ reintegration into society after experiencing the trauma of war. It “gives a purpose, a goal, and excitement to live life again,” Sell said, and he wants others to see and feel it. The team was sponsored by Standard Insurance Company in partnership with Disabled Sports USA.