Girl With Boston Marathon Dreams Needs New Racing Wheelchair

SPENCER (CBS) - Maddie Wilson is one young woman to watch. This little girl with a big smile and spirit just competed in the Adaptive Sports Junior Nationals in Minnesota. She brought home seven gold medals and a silver.

"I feel really proud... Just a big accomplishment for me," Maddie said.

The Spencer fifth grader who lives with spina bifida is already pretty well known in the racing world.

"I just love to go fast. I love the fact I can do that whenever I want," she said.

But with more than 55 races under her belt, Maddie's racing chair from when she was five years old is due for an upgrade. Racing chairs cost thousands of dollars and aren't covered by insurance.

"The new one is only going to have three wheels and it's going to hopefully make me go a lot faster than I already am," Maddie said.

Once she gets her chair, Maddie knows she has her work cut out catching up to her idol: Boston Marathon Champion Tatyana McFadden.

"Well, you have to kind of get a lot of practice. It can't just happen overnight. You have to do so much practice. You have to train," Maddie explained.

We're pretty confident this girl's got a big, bright future ahead… and she agrees.

"I think I do!" Maddie said, smiling.

With a few years to go until Maddie is eligible for the Boston Marathon, this new chair would put in some crucial training miles. You can donate to her family's fundraising efforts on their GoFundMe page.