Adam Nickel had everything going for him. He was set to begin his last year of UW’s demanding pharmacy program. He was an accomplished runner and had just reached his fundraising goal for an upcoming charity marathon, which he was running in honor of his grandmother.
On Sunday, Nickel’s promising life came to an end as he crossed the finish line in Little Rock, Ark.
“All I know is he crossed the finish line, he gave a smile and dropped,” his mother, Cynthia Nickel of Kaukauna, said today.
Nickel, 27, who was running his sixth marathon, finished 18th in a field of 1,600. He was pronounced dead 21 minutes after crossing the finish line.