Violet Hall pointed her left index finger to the camera as she leaped into the air for a portrait shot.
Hall, who was born with her right arm ending below her elbow, was in New Delhi, the capital city of India, competing at the World Para Athletics Championships.
The Bloomington South product and three-time Indiana high school state track qualifier sported a grin that was telling. She was reveling in a moment in her track career.
She had competed at the state and national level before she earned a spot on the world stage. Her work ethic paid massive dividends. Enough to put her in a position to compete against the top para-athletes on the globe. She placed fifth in the 200-meter dash and eighth in the 100-meter dash last year.
Hall has a neon personality with an elite game. Her fire is lit by those who limit her because she is a one-armed athlete.
“Going to World’s and competing against everyone else that also had similar impairments to me … it wasn’t just about the competition,” Hall said. “It was just very inspiring to see all these people that were just like me, trying to figure out the same things as me, seeing how they adapted. It definitely has helped shape who I am this season.”
Who Hall is this season is a competitive high school senior and IndyStar Athlete of the Week. She will race at the Indiana girls state track and field meet on Friday.
Her world debut was vindication to the doubters, while her high school career has been just as deafening. She’s a grinder to the core who views herself an equal to any other athlete that runs on the oval.
“I don’t think of myself as any different than anyone else and I don’t think that anyone should think that I’m different than them either because I’m still out here doing everything else that everyone is doing,” Hall said. “I’m putting in the work to get to where I am because I want to … Part of me does want to prove people wrong if they do think that way about me.”
Hall’s prep track career coincided with her basketball career. She spent most of her life as a hooper who spent time playing travel ball and was underestimated. She was so good that she earned a few offers to play college basketball. Her plan going into high school was to get recruited to play at the next level.
But little did people know that playing basketball became miserable. Towards the summer after eighth grade, her spark for hooping began to dim down.
“By the end of senior year, it was basically just really repetitive for me,” Hall said. “I still enjoyed it sometimes, but it was just getting kind of hard for me to have fun … If you’re not having fun then you have to change something, and I couldn’t really change anything else but finish out my senior season at that point.”
Track and field was a second hobby that she found a lot more joy doing. By her junior season, it became second nature. As a freshman, Hall competed in the 4×100-meter relay and high jump at state. After she ran a few summer meets, she took the sport more seriously during her third year.
She had a blast competing as a runner. That enjoyment fueled her drive to work harder. At last season’s state meet, she was a member of the fourth-place 4×400-meter relay team at state. Hall also competed in the 200-meter dash, long jump and 4×100-meter relay.
“Running is a punishment for most other sports and that’s kind of all that I do now is just run,” Hall said. “It’s definitely been a blessing in disguise, I guess, being able to want to push myself. I struggled with a lot of burnout with basketball and having track as that refreshing season, refreshing time to just focus on something else was very helpful for me.”
Her athleticism is the talk of the town. She is a versatile threat who can be inserted into any sprint, relay or field event. It transcends her impairment.
“With Violet, you just sort of forget about it once you see her move and once you see her jump into workouts and do things,” said Bloomington South coach Jill Rensink. “She doesn’t let it hold her back; she doesn’t let it prevent her from doing anything that we’re doing at practice.
“Freshman year, working with her coming out of blocks was completely challenging because she has to balance on one hand, but she finds a way to adapt and adjust and keep moving forward. I do think she had that little fire in her where she wants to prove people wrong.”
Hall is as talented as they come with an energy that is just as infectious. She’s a humble competitor who isn’t cutthroat. She’s the type of athlete that would rather see her teammates succeed than herself.
She is regarded as an inspiration on her team who hopes to expand her influence on a bigger platform one day. So far, she has become a trailblazer for the Panthers in Bloomington.
“She can do everything that we can do and more,” said Bloomington South senior Ellie Barada. “She can really do a little bit of everything, and it just showcases her athletic ability … she’s just a really funny, great teammate and really down to earth.
“She can do anything she puts her mind to. She doesn’t let (her impairment) hold her back which is really cool to see. I think that can inspire a lot of young runners and older runners too, including myself. Just showing that you can compete at any level, no matter what people say.”
Hall is committed to Bellarmine University. Before she takes her talents to Louisville, Kentucky, Hall will compete at state for the third time.
Individually, she won a sectional title in the 200-meter dash with a time of 25.54 seconds before she captured a regional title at 25.07 last week. She’s on the state-qualifying 4×100-meter relay team and might also run the 4×400-meter relay on Friday.
It will be her final go in the high school track scene. One more opportunity to shine. Most importantly, she wants to be recognized for her talents rather than her impairment.
“For me, it’s kind of different because it doesn’t really affect how I run,” Hall said. “But for example, if you have prosthetics on your lower limbs or if you’re a wheelchair racer, a lot of people see you and (say), ‘Oh, no way that person can be an elite athlete, no way that person can be better than me’.
“I’ve been told, ‘You’re good for having one arm’. I don’t want to be good for having one arm. I think that I’m just good in general. I guess I would like to be considered good just in general rather than because of my disability.”
Marc Ray is a high school sports reporter at the IndyStar. He can be reached at marc.ray@indystar.com , and on X, formerly Twitter, at @themarcszn.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Bloomington South track senior Violet Hall wants to be recognized for talent
Reporting by Marc Ray, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Marc Ray, Indianapolis Star | USA TODAY Network
