Run Melbourne, presented by The Age, was a marathon held on the 22nd of June which allowed participants to raise money for a charity of their choosing. Almost 20,000 people took part in the Melbourne Age Run which comprised of the 5km, 7.5km, 10km and the 21.1 km half marathon. Roshni and I participated in the 21.1 km half marathon while Ajay took part in the 10 km run.

Federation Square was the starting point of the half marathon and at around 7.00am that morning, a sea of runners decked out in their running gear were preparing for the gruelling run. It was cold, dark and drizzling but the atmosphere on Flinders Street was exhilarating. All those months of training and following a ‘relatively’ strict diet were about to be put to the test as we gathered together waiting for the marathon to begin. The first round of the circuit itself was rather tedious but by my second round, I was exhausted. I entertained numerous thoughts of giving up due to injury and fatigue but I kept remembering Gurudev and soldiered on. After 2 hours and 22 minutes, I finally crossed the finish line ready to collapse but triumphant nonetheless.

The thought of completing a half marathon run seemed impossible at first. Talking amongst ourselves about taking part in the marathon to raise money for the Chinmaya Mission was one thing, but actually crossing the finish line was a completely different story! We certainly would not have been able to complete the marathon had it not been for all those who helped support us by donating generously to the Chinmaya Mission as well as our fellow CHYKs who came in the early hours of the morning to cheer us on.

Run Melbourne: Run Melbourne participants and supporters with Darshan