LONDON MARATHON 2013 - AN OVERVIEW

London Marathon Overview

All I know is that fear and depression were buried in London’s pavement.  There is no reason or interest in welcoming those two enemies into my life.

On Sunday April 21st, 700,000 spectators took London's streets. They held signs that said: We will not be stopped, For Boston, We are not afraid. These were all reactions to the indignation caused by the explosions at the Boston Marathon on April 15th whose perpetrators were allegedly two Chechen terrorists.

Each runner was given a black ribbon to pin on to our T-shirts. We were also given several instructions. For example: to notify the police if we saw anything suspicious or out of the ordinary.

There were also press announcements suggesting that spectators who go to cheer for runners should be alert and inform the police of any suspicious actions. They said: it is impossible to watch 42 kilometers, but each of you can keep a look out of your surroundings. This message was so different from the six marathons I have run and the dozens of races I have participated in before. It seems we really have be prepared for a different type of world.

From my point of view, the Expo was great. Cristina, Fernando and I went one Friday before the race. It wasn't as huge and glamorous as the one in New York. But, we were welcomed with triumphant music at the chip stand. It was also so well organized, just as much as the rest of the competition. Then, we walked through a gallery that displayed the 5 Majors (the biggest races in the world) with pictures and messages. I had some pictures taken of me there. Because, if all went well on Sunday, it meant I had completed the 5: Chicago, Boston, NY, Berlin and... London.

Further down, there was another gallery fashioned like a planetarium -sponsored by Adidas- with a wall to sign and official race clothes on display in a very broad space. The new beverage Lucozade-official sponsor of the race- held a lot of events and presented new flavors, and there was a DJ playing really cool electronic music.

In the pasta party area there was a pop music choreography. The crowd ate spaghetti, the best meal prior to a race. Personally, I preferred to not eat there. I chose to eat at the hotel where I could control which and how many ingredients each meal had.

Since this race is based on charity and solidarity work, the rest of the stands were assigned to causes: Alzheimer's, heart disease, children with Down Syndrome, kidney disease, Cancer, etc. When I saw all this, I made a commitment to myself: I will not run for Yasuni which is my cause in Challenge 21 x 24 and in my everyday life, but rather I would run for people with depression. Because I have always considered depression as the worst of all sicknesses; because it removes your will to live.

On Saturday, we had a relaxed day and took a city tour. We walked along Camden Market with Floren, Ana Maria and Javier, and rested at the hotel. At night, we had some pasta at a restaurant in front of the hotel and then continued resting some more.

At 7:00 o'clock on Sunday morning a bus picked us up, about 100 runners from different countries. Among which there were 9 Ecuadorians. We were so excited and nervous that we spoke to each other with utter enthusiasm and at times we were in sheer silence trying to concentrate and relax. I loved the fact that we were together the whole time during the marathon. In other competitions, we kept to ourselves.

I met Coco Guiterrez on the bus, a spectacular Mexican that was running his 41st marathon and was about to complete her majors just like me. She told me that he used to run four marathons per year. But that he lowered the amount in order to keep in good shape to continue running her whole life. She also told me that his best timing was 3:24because she was training for an ultramarathon and ran 42k as part of his training. She doesn't race in order to improve her timing anymore; she does it for fun (Coco arrived before I did and welcomed me at the finish line). I have her email address to keep in touch.

I had already set my mind to believing that this would be my last marathon. But after meeting this lovely Mexican, I am not so sure anymore.

We arrived to the starting line, on Greenwich, and we went towards the grass field where the clothing trucks were that held our belongings. There was a show; there had been a religious ceremony some thirst-quenching stands and toilets. Some metal boards that we found became useful seats to avoid sitting on the wet ground. 

There was some small talk before our stretching exercises. I was thrilled; all the nervousness had gone away. 

The weather was chilly but sunny, about 10 degrees C; perfect for me. It was too hot for everyone else.

Each of us went to our places; most of us were assigned #4 for runners who were expected to arrive from 3:30 to 3:45. A minute of silence was requested for the victims of the Boston bombing, it might have been the most felt moment of the race. 35,000 runners quiet and meditating on the pain that our fellow athletes had felt a few days before at the Mecca of athletic events.

The whistle blew and I began to take off the plastic bag, the old T-shirt, the old sleeves and anything I thought I could remove when I started to get warm. The rest of my friends were already wearing the uniform that Asics and Marathon, our sponsors, had given us.

Greenwich is a huge area, so we had run for at least 10km, maybe more, mostly downhill and a bit uphill. That was surprising. I thought that the route was flat; according to what Gaby Solah- an experienced runner who completed her 5 Majors a long time ago- told me.

I ran alongside Cristina for more or less 6 kilometers and with Lenin up to the 15th kilometer. Then, I continued alone, fully concentrated and a bit distracted at times by my own thoughts and by the people that cheered for us the whole time. I remember a sign that said: Running is the only fuc… thing you have to do now. Another one said: Don’t stop, everybody is watching. That one made me laugh. But then I realized that I was 4 minutes behind my time and that was not funny at all.

I heard Fernando shout out my name at mile 13 and that made me so happy, I felt fulfilled. At that point the route turned back. So I Could see the elite runners who had already reached the 35th kilometer. They seemed tired; for some reason it surprised me. To me, they should have been relaxed and happy; they were elite runners and were about to reach the finish line. Later on I saw for myself what it meant to be at Km35. 

You tend to forget!

You can run 6 marathons. But, the seventh will always give you surprises. Quenching my thirst with Pedialyte may have prevented me from having cramps; staying in pen #4 might have avoided me from getting stuck with slower runners; my contention training stopped me from burning my last efforts; Chi running from the very beginning freed my from leg pain. Maybe it was eating outside my schedule, it could have been that snack I failed to refuse from someone, or just because that's like. New obstacles kept me from breaking my personal record.

As always, the final kilometers were crucial test. George, an experienced runner with a coach's spirit, told me what I should think on the way: George is my leader. Keep on target.  Of course I laughed and told him that I would not follow his advice. Unexplainably, somewhere along the 36th kilometer I found myself saying-in my mind- Keep on target.  Keep on target.  After kilometer 38 I started to feel pain in my hip, it wasn't too strong and I felt a bit nauseous. I didn't even remember my Feldene flash that I had stored in my belt. All I could ask was for God to take to heaven or to the finish line; he had to lift me because I could no longer do it. I was by the ship and Eye area, a beautiful spot for the race. But, I felt terrible. I saw some birds and wanted to fly. I got over it. Instead of wondering when I would arrive, I started thinking: "I'm flying. This is beautiful, relax."

We arrived at Hyde Park, near the Buckingham Palace and we could already see the 800m sign, then 400, only 200 meters left. And I felt like killing them! I felt down again. Finally, I saw the finish line and had the strength to sprint a little and smile for the camera. I arrived. I saw Coco, who told me rest; that I didn't look well. I felt terrible! I laid down a while and lifted my legs against a tree trunk. The world started smiling at me once more.  Life became beautiful again.

I picked up my clothes and went to the meeting point where I reached the letter E for Ecuador! It filled me with joy to finish, it was great to know that my teammates were safe and healthy; it was so fulfilling to feel that I had attained my goal by giving it my all. What a beautiful race! It was so well organized. The beverage availability was great, so was the volunteer support. It was so well organized in every sense.

No one broke the speed record this year. The winners of the London Marathon were:

Men:

Kebede 2:06:0

Mutai 2:06:34

Kebede's (that enabled Ethiopia to hold two spots on the London podium for the first time) 2:06:57.

Women:

Jeptoo 2:20:15

Kiplagat 2:21:32

Yukiko Akaba 2:24:43 (first Japanese woman to stand on London's podium)

There were celebrities and many people were wearing costumes; there were also some members of the Guinness World Records committee because of all the money gathered by the foundations. 40 runners were sent to the hospital. The best Ecuadorian runner was Bernardo Davalos (3:16:10).

I missed my goal by 9 minutes, (my timing was 3:42:16) but I still manage to smile each time I remember the final moments: only 400 more to go, 200...It seemed like forever! And then, crossing the finish line; that tiredness, the nausea, the intense pain, the spiritual and mental jogging must be worth something for people who suffer from depression. If it's up to me, there will be no more sadness! There’s only joy and the will to build, to love, to live.