London Marathon

Kapil Dhar

If life is a marathon, then might as well make it London Marathon. 

Last Sunday, it was amazing to be part of one of the major marathons. The event is more than 40 years old and is so well planned and supported that one can’t help but feel overwhelmed. 

My second marathon, that too after nearly five years gap, first one being in the arctic circle up north in the beautiful Norwegian town of Tromso (#Midnight Sun Marathon 2018). I had my reservation about London marathon considering it too crowded, city focused and full of pomp and show as we Londoners do for each and everything. 

Guess what, my expectations were not far off, but surprisingly they turned much more positive than anticipated because the intent and ingenious emotion of the participants and the spectators made a marvellous atmosphere. All the 26 odd miles, I kept on hearing my name (it was on my T-shirt), with great applaud and encouragement. The lovely quotes on the signboards were a super booster for the energy and humour. By the end of the day my jaws were super relaxed as I had wide smiles through the miles, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way. 

Some quotes that I remember from the signboards: 

“You RUN better than the government.”

“I don’t know you, but I trust you.”

“You look so strong.”

At times, it was tough to decide whether to continue or listen to the songs that the spectating choirs were playing, I hope I showed enough gratitude to the musicians who braved the rains and kept on cheering the participants through their great music. 

The run itself was bunch of warm memories of different parts of the city. Personally, it was great to be across my different workplaces (including the previous and present) in the city right from Canary Wharf to Tower of London. 

The inspiration was all over this year’s London Marathon, right from Sifan Hassan’s initial struggles to end up being the top participant among women. And then the story of resilience of Tom Durnin (https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/65380963). It feels wonderful to be in the company of these great people who inspire for the greater human endeavour. 

It’s great to be part of this iconic event. My heartfelt gratitude to all the supporters, volunteers and the residents of the city who come out to support the participants in big numbers and cheer them up through the grand distance. 

As part of my Marathon, I want to spread awareness about the #Savesoil initiative of Sadhguru. Please do check out Conscious planet website (https://consciousplanet.org/) and influence conservation and care of soil in whatever way you can.