The 2nd BankMed Youth Race that took place on Sunday will definitely be a memorable day for everyone included.
If you were one of the 8,252 who took part in the youth race, a big hearty congratulations to you! You have proven to the community that entou akid adda!
As I watched all of you yesterday, I thought to myself, this is what it is all about. People standing together as a community, showing the world what our future looks like - and oh! What an optimistic future that looked like from where I was standing.
At the start of the day, the weather turned against you as it started to pour, but you didn't allow the rain to dampen your excitement. I watched you standing at the starting line with all your peers, excited to start running, waiting for the gun to go off, the presenter was asking you to raise your hands for the picture while you were ready to go. The gun went off and off you ran! You didn't allow the drizzle take away your smile as you crossed the starting line.
What was even more beautiful, was that while I watched many of you run the track in confidence, I watched many of you help your friends and encourage them to go on when they felt like they couldn't go on any further. If that isn't a prime example of sportsmanship, I don't know what is.
As you all are aware, by registering to run at the race, you supported a charity 100%. That alone is a highly commendable act, but you all should be proud of the energy you brought to the races, the determination you all ran with, and that you proved to the world that running is fun!
If you are feeling down for not reaching the podium, please allow me to tell you, that there were no losers. As cliche as this might sound, you all won. You supported your community, you ran until the finishing line, and you had fun while doing so. You even got a medal to remind you that you were a participant in this one of a kind event!
Your legs might be aching while you are reading this and that's ok. That pain will go away, but the pride you are feeling right now is one that will live with you for a long time. I look forward to seeing you at the race next year!
Congratulations once again to every single person who ran at the 2nd BankMed Youth Race! [by : Rita Makhoul | beirutmarathonblog]
