Boris Shtonda lost his right leg in an explosion in Beit Hanun, in the northern Gaza Strip, in November 2023. On Sunday he crossed the finish line of the New York City Marathon, nearly three years after his injury, JNS reports.

The 29-year-old reservist from Tel Aviv served in the IDF's elite Duvdevan unit and was severely wounded in combat, according to JNS. He ran the November 1 race on a prosthetic leg and recorded an official time of 6 hours, 31 minutes and 41 seconds. The Jewish Chronicle reports that he punched the air with delight and raised his arms in triumph as he crossed the finish line after the 26.2-mile run.

The marathon was not his only test this fall. The Jewish Chronicle notes he completed a triathlon just three weeks earlier. At the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, he finished a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile cycle and a 26.2-mile run, 140 miles in all, the Chronicle reports.

While training for the Ironman challenge last year, Shtonda told the Israeli news outlet Ynet that he lives by two words: "No excuses." He said people should not invent reasons why they cannot do something, but instead invent reasons why they can, and then figure out how to do it, according to the Chronicle.

"He maketh my feet like hinds' feet, and setteth me upon my high places." (Psalm 18:33) For a soldier who gave a leg for his country and then ran 26.2 miles through New York, the words fit.