And those who are last happen to be first

This is the testimony of Brent Regis. I like it very much. Some of the details could be different then in the original story, but in general it is quite close.
I wrote it in English for my students, and, well... by the way, it was told in English.


It has happened during the Olympic Games while the Race of One Mile Distance. 
Runners got in line ready to run, and a man with a gun stood aside and lifted up his gun to give the start shot.
The race for such a distance has its specifics. From the very beginning you have to take a right pace. It shouldn’t be very slow or very fast in order to have enough strength from the beginning to the end. 
The gun banged and everybody ran, and an announcer started to give his comments for their race.   
One of sportsmen from the very beginning took a pace a bit faster than others and he got ahead of others. Some people started to shout to him, “Hey! Where have you jerked to? You will fizzle out”, but he just continued to run. It was a black sportsman, and he was evidently in a very good shape.
There were people along the finish line. They were generally friends and relatives of runners. They shouted and chanted names of runners because they knew them personally.
Now the one who was running first got ahead of others in quite a significant distance, and it was evident that he isn’t getting tired. He clearly was going for a new world record. 
Announcer has told with a thrilled voice that if the sportsman will hold the pace the result may be a new world record and he announced his name, and right away people on the stadium started to call out his name with shouts of encouragement. 
Soon he was getting close to the finish line still keeping his pace and stadium began to chant because everybody could see that he will not just win the race but will set up a new world record. The runner came to the finish line and something even more amazing has happened; he began to speed up.
“It is impossible!” said the announcer.  – He has not just held the pace but has kept his strength for the final jerk. It is just incredible!”
The stadium started to applaud. The sportsman left just about 30 meters to finish and then something happened, something nobody would expect; runner has stumbled at some kind of bunker on the racecourse, made an awkward step, screamed and fallen down.   
Stadium sighed.
Many have jumped on their feet.
The runner has jumped up too but screamed out again got hold on his thigh and has fallen again. Possibly because of the tension in all muscles and unsuccessful fall he has hurt his tendon or the thigh joint. He tried to get up again, yet in this time he just razed himself up on the knee and got down again.
“It is so sad!” – The announcer said. – And yet who will finally win?”
And he called the name of the runner who was following next, the one who at that very time was running by the fallen sportsman.  Of course that runner finished the race and broke the strip. Applauds came but not that strong as usually come to meet the winner. For some reason the eyes of the entire stadium were settled on black sportsman laying on the ground the one who experienced the failure. It was like the whole crowd felt his tragedy together with him.
Well, the sportsman tried to get up again but he couldn’t. On his forehead he had big drops of sweat and his face looked like he was tormented with a terrible pain. 
Yet he made another attempt to get up and fell again. And then he started to crawl fighting with a pain.
At that moment the man came out of the line of people standing along the finish line. He was black as well but his hair was totally grey. He came running to the fallen runner and said something to him. After that he put his hand over his shoulder and lifted him up. They walked together the runner, who was young, tall and strong yet crippled, and the second one, the weak old man.
First the grey-haired man led the runner away from the racecourse, but the sportsman has shaken his head in disagreement, and said something to his helper with a thrill in his voice. The old man agreed and then they went together to the finish.
When people saw it they started to applaud again, and when the runner began to come to the finish they got up on their feet and started to chant his name again and again.
Somebody went running ahead and restored the finish strip.
Both the sportsman and his grey-haired helper were sweating hard. Both were crying. But with every step they were getting close to the finish. And when finally the runner has crossed the finish line and broken the strip, the entire stadium went crazy with applauds.
Those who are last can become first. This runner came to the finish last, but in hearts of the entire stadium he was still the first one. And he proved that with his persistence to get to the end in spite of his tragedy. He didn’t receive the gold medal and he didn’t settle the new world record, yet all the newspapers were writing about what he did, and his achievement is still inspiring people to fight to the end.
And the grey-haired old man happened to be his father. He watched his son while he was exercising. He was with him when he was working on himself to get the best result. He knew like nobody else the cost his son was getting the victory with. And of course he couldn’t stand indifferent when his son fell just few steps away from the finish. He ran to meet him and he helped him to get up and to win anyway. 
Paul said: “Don’t you know that they who run the race run all, but just one receives the prize? So run, that you may obtain” (1Co.9:23)
When you run to your finish, only your heavenly Father knows what you pay for the victory. And even if you will fall on your way He will certainly run to meet you to uphold you and to help you to finish your race and to overcome, no matter what.