Josh Ripley, High School Runner, Carries Injured Opponent A Half Mile Before Running Own Race (VIDEO)

'Hero Runner' Rescues Bleeding Opponent

When a loud scream interrupted a cross country meet for a Minnesota high school, most of the runners didn't stop to investigate, Yahoo Sports reported.

But junior varsity runner Josh Ripley did. What he found was one of his opponents, Mark Paulauskas, writhing in pain on the ground.

When a group of runners clumped together, one of them spiked Paulauskas with their metal cleats.

Immediately, the wound began bleeding badly.

“I could see my ankle bone and I just knew it was bad,” Paulauskas told WCCO-TV.

“A lot of runners passed me.”

Abandoning the race, Ripley swooped in just in time, lifting Paulauskas and running him a half mile to his coaches.

Where most would throw in the towel, Ripley decided to keep going, turning back around to run his 3-mile race. He finished 211th out of 261 competitors.

Paulauskas was immediately rushed to the hospital.

Doctors then determined that he needed 20 stitches and a walking boot to protect the wound, ABC News reported.

"I really feel I just did the right thing," Ripley told ABC News. "Any of my teammates would have done the same thing. It wasn't an act of heroism. It was an act of kindness that I know I needed to accomplish."

Ripley may refuse to view what he did as an act of heroism, but his opponent Paulauskas told ABC that he remains thankful.

"I'm just incredibly grateful for what he did," Paulauskas said of Ripley.

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