Morgan Stickney’s Race Against the Clock

Stickney, who endured first one amputation and then another, has put off surgery to chase a world record. After years of pain, she is closer to it than ever.

Four minutes 40 seconds and change. That is the time marker, the destination, the magnet drawing Morgan Stickney ever closer. For over a year, Stickney has been training diligently in a pool in Cary, N.C., slicing off seconds in her relentless pursuit of those prized numbers on a digital clock. “That’s the goal,” Stickney said. “I’m going after it.”