MEDINA, Ohio — Family and friends are mourning the loss of the Cleveland half marathon runner who died after nearly finishing the race.
22-year-old Taylor Ceepo collapsed within a quarter mile of the finish line Sunday. She recently graduated from Walsh University in Canton but for more than ten years she played soccer for Internationals Soccer Club in Medina.
“She was so dedicated to everything that she did, she put her heart into everything especially the marathon, that was something she really wanted to accomplish,” says Ceepo’s Former Internationals Soccer Club Teammate, Rachel Baughman.
“You’re just so in shock because she’s so healthy and she always put so much hard work into fitness and exercise, so it just didn’t seem real at all, didn’t want to believe it, still don’t want to believe it.”
Remembering Taylor Ceepo (photos)
Several of Ceepo’s former teammates and coach met Monday evening at Pinnacle Sports to honor her memory.
“She walked in and automatically started making jokes, just so funny,” says Former Teammate, Brooke Brenner. “Seriously, such an amazing girl and friend to everybody.”
Internationals Soccer Club Founder, Zdravko Popovic has known the Ceepo family for more than ten years.
He describes Taylor as committed and dedicated to soccer.
“Perhaps even more important was her character, was her quality as a human being off of the field,” says Popovic.
“It is a difficult time and knowing that we have each other is going to help us strive through it and Taylor is always going to be with us no matter what.”
Two of Ceepo’s former teammates got tattoos of a heart and the letter ‘T’ on their hands in her memory.
"Every time I look down, I know she's with me," says Baughman.