Helias runner loses eligibility over pro-life relay, but not his conscience

James Vignola runs in the LIFE Runners A-Cross the Country Pro-Life Relay. The freshman from Helias Catholic High School in Jefferson City lost a year of track and cross country eligibility in Missouri by taking part in the non-competitive fundraiser. (Submitted photo)

By Olivia Ingle

Thursday, March 21, 2013

A Helias Catholic High School freshman was ruled ineligible from participating in high school sports for up to a year because he ran in what the Missouri High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) considers a “non-school competition.”

Fifteen-year-old James Vignola ran nearly seven miles near Boonville in the LIFE Runners A-Cross the Country Pro-Life Relay. He knew going into the run that it would affect his cross country and track careers at Helias.

“I thought it was the right thing to do, and my conscience was telling me to do it,” he said.

MSHSAA eligibility standards state, “You may not practice for, or participate with, a non-school team or in any organized non-school athletic competition and for your school team in the same sport during the school sport season.”

The LIFE Runners event is considered “non-school competition,” and James was currently in the track season at the parochial school in Jefferson City.

The National LIFE Runners team prays, runs, raises money for pregnancy help centers and builds awareness on the issue of abortion.

The A-Cross the Country Pro-Life Relay is a 4,000-mile relay that began Feb. 13 in Brooklyn and San Francisco. Various LIFE Runners across the country run portions of the race. The National LIFE Runners Mid-Missouri chapter ran the portion from High Hill to Higginsville March 12-14. Both ends of the relay are scheduled to meet and end the relay in Sioux Falls, S.D., on March 24.

Jim Vignola, James’ father, said James was told at a track meeting prior to the season that the LIFE Runners event he had signed up for would disqualify him from school athletics.

James said what bothers him most is that the Pro-Life Relay wasn’t a competition.

“It is an organized event, but I don’t see how it gives players an advantage, unless I’m competing against someone,” James said.

Anne Carmichael, Mid-Missouri chapter leader of the National LIFE Runners, said the relay is in no way a competition.

“It was about raising awareness, sacrifice and prayer,” she said. “James was so humble, too.”

James said he has received a lot of support at school for his decision.

“They’re very proud of me,” he said of his classmates. “They think it was the right thing to do, but were shocked I chose to do this and stand up to MSHSAA.”

James is in the process of appealing MSHSAA’s punishment, but not the association’s decision. He wants the wording of the eligibility standard to be changed.

“Once a self-report has been made by a school, they can submit to our office and request a lesser penalty and offer what their request would be,” said Jason West, communications director for MSHSAA. “It gets submitted in writing to our executive director, and he decides yes or no.

“The school can then appeal (the director’s) decision to the (MSHSAA) appeals committee.”

Doug Light, Helias athletic director, said he’s confident the appeal will go through.

“This type of thing doesn’t happen often, but does come up from time to time,” Light said.

He said he thinks this particular eligibility standard is in place to make sure high school athletes are fresh and excited to compete during practice and games.

Even though he’s ineligible to run for Helias, James said he continues to run regularly, and he doesn’t regret his decision to support pro-life.

“I don’t like how they say it’s a woman’s right to kill a baby,” he said. “I want to offer support for the unborn who don’t have a say.”

More like this story

2warped757 2 months, 4 weeks ago

Good for him! It's good to see that high school students have some depth of character and aren't totally self-focused (not sure I would have had that kind of conviction when I was a student at Helias!). Hope the appeal allows him back on the team.

dlauf3 2 months, 4 weeks ago

Admirable young man! Helias Catholic High School is blessed to have such a student, of strong conviction, who lives his faith. All in Christ for Pro-Life!

JCLifer 2 months, 4 weeks ago

MSHSAA needs to go away.

stop1 2 months, 4 weeks ago

James is an inspiration for us all! I wonder if anyone can find out if the MSHSAA has enforced this rule with other athletes raising money for charity.

JimV 2 months, 4 weeks ago

MSHSAA does enforce the rule and it prohibits student athletes in cross country & track from running in "organized events" during their respective seasons. It not only affects the individual athlete but can affect the whole team as well if it's not reported and is discovered later. Our high school runners can't run in other worthy events that coincide with their seasons such as the Komen for the Cure 5K, the March of Dimes Relay for Life, and this past weekend we had the YMCA Luck of the Irish 5K which was a benefit for a local scholarship fund. Our youth should be encouraged to become involved and particpate in these types of events - instead, they are being punished.

JCLifer 2 months, 4 weeks ago

Schools willingly join MSHAA and as members, they vote on what the rules are and pay dues to fund MSHAA and its luxuriouis little palace over on Keene Street. If enough schools got together, they could change this rule, or else they could just drop out of MSHAA.

MSHAA isn't the enemy here, it is the schools who have done this to their own students.

mshsaa.org/About/BoardOfDirectors.aspx

Wspahn 2 months, 4 weeks ago

Good for Mr. Vignola and good for MSHSAA, It sounds like they both did the right thing. For these sheeple who keep wanting to get rid of rules, how is that working for us? We are becoming a society of lawlessness and it starts at all of these lower level things. I don't really want to stop at the stop sign, and at the capital they try to pass laws about speed traps by law enforcement instead of respecting these rules. Judges who drink and drive and then get their job back. Humm, right is wrong and wrong is right.

stop1 2 months, 4 weeks ago

Mr. Vignola did the right thing MSHSAA followed the rules. I would define sheeple as people who blindly follow the rules.

usmc007 2 months, 4 weeks ago

We all want our kids to have the attitude like this young man has demonstrated. So what message is really being sent here to the youths who already have a million other bad things they could be doing. Is there an alternative motive? Is this a way of taking out competition, cause we are serious about our sports here in Jefferson city. Just saying it's comemendable what this young man has done so for that here's a Marine Hand salute to you.

Sequoia 2 months, 4 weeks ago

I wonder who will run for these babies:

democracynow.org/2013/3/20/ten_years_later_us_has_left

connor 2 months, 4 weeks ago

The different factions can have their own runs. They can do that now thanks to the US military. No more favored tribes or warring sects. Why they can even blame their liberators' expelled munitions for birth defects and say nothing about the 550 short tons of yellow cake uranium or anthrax that was never found.

I wonder where it went?

OH that's right the left still claims it never existed.

RobHunterJohnson 2 months, 4 weeks ago

and it never did! Just ask that young vet in KC, the two oilmen LIED, lots of young lives lost, maimed, spent trillions, fixed nothing, they were popping off bombs just this week on the anniversery, and BUSH almost destroyed this great nation! OH and by the way they throwed ol Colin Powell under the oil bus too! Nothing is sacred to oilmen! Rob

online_editor 2 months, 4 weeks ago

Just to keep the discussion based on the issues raised in the story, let's arbitrarily narrow our focus to those issues rather than broaden the discussion further to comments that focus only on the military and national foreign policy, which aren't directly related to this student's focus. Feel free to post opinions which are solely about those issues on other stories where that's a more central topic. That way, folks can have this page to discuss the issues that are pivotal to this story. Thanks. --Rick Brown, online editor, News Tribune

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