April, 29th 2009 - UPDATE

Dearest sponsors,

Thank you so much for your support, thanks to you all WE MADE IT !!!

More than £2,200 raised were raised for Get Kids Going through my page!!
... and about half a million pounds if we include all the other Get Kids Going runners !!

On top of that, I had a fantastic time in the streets of London last Sunday!
I am in a great shape and my aches/stiffness are quite better now.

And I am happy to announce you that I managed to reach all of my personal objectives, on top of the fundraising :

- I survived
- I enjoyed the race, the weather and the people A LOT
- I ate loads of unhealthy stuff since the race
- and above all, I ran the marathon in 3h44mn !! (my objective was 3h45 - I improved my performance by 8mn vs last year!)
I am extremely happy as you can imagine !!

Thank you again for your support, it really thought of you all during the race and it truly helped me keep going!!! 

And don't worry, the video I promised is on its way and you should be able to see it in about 2 weeks... :)

Have a great day !
Malik

For those of you who enjoy running stories (I know that many of you are subscribers of "Running mag" and spend hours watching the "Shoelace channel"), here is a little more detail :

- miles 1 to 8 were a true pleasure ! Had a cheerful crowd, received holy water from a priest blessing runners in front of his Church and learned important things on life like "if you want people to encourage you and shout your name (I had my name on my t-shirt), don't run next to a guy disguised as a giant banana" - note:I repeated the same mistake again at the 23rd mile, as I ran next to Nemo - human beings never learn...

- mile 8 : started feeling an old stiffness coming back from the past, on my right thigh and said something profound like "oh, oohhh..."

- mile 15 : was 8-10mn late on my schedule : at that point, I really thought I wouldn't to finish the race within my objective or at all...

- miles 16-19 : kept on going at a fairly good pace : the pain I felt on other parts of my body helped me forget the stiffness on my right thigh (see what a cunning body I have!)

- miles 20-22 : trying to find my sister in the crowd kept my mind busy enough to forget I was running (and I never found her by the way...or did she say she'd come between miles 4 and 5 ?...)

- mile 22 : started accelerating as I knew my objective was within reach (surprisingly, you have the energy to do that!)

- mile 26 : slowed down for the photographers!... :)

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For those who do not know me, I am Malik and I am a cool guy (...) who enjoys both running and fat french fries with mayo. This combination can sometimes be a problem.

For my second marathon, I decided to run for a charity.

Running for something you believe in makes a huge difference.

Why "Get kids going!" ?

"Get  kids going !" provides personalised manual wheelchairs and trikes for children to use every day;

But above all, "Get kids going!" promotes sport and provides disabled children with specially built sport equipement and help them fulfil themselves fully.

As I got to know more about the pychology of physical handicap, I realized two important things :

1. When you are disabled, the way people look at you does not make you feel like a complete human being, or sometimes not like a human being at all. You lack confidence and the way people look at you does not help you feel better. Fulfilling yourself through sport, and you know what I am talking about if you practice or used to practice any sport, makes you feel complete as a human being and forces recognition from people around you. "Get  kids going !" contributes to giving this psychological well-being to disabled children.

2. What seems impossible to you seems even more impossible for disabled people ! You feel like you would never be able to run a marathon ? Disabled people feel like they would never be able to run for 5 minutes. I believe "Get  kids going !"  gives the necessary equipment for disabled people to go beyond their limits, to fulfil their dreams of "normality".

Everyday I am thankful for not having a handicap and being able to run for those who can't - let us all repay our luck  : please sponsor me now !

1Km costs £45 ! But you can give £5 if you want ! I promise to think about you during the whole distance that you sponsor...

Thank you for your support !!

Malik

NOTE : Donating through Justgiving is quick, easy and totally secure. It’s also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Get Kids Going! gets your money faster and, if you’re a UK taxpayer, Justgiving makes sure 25% in Gift Aid, plus a 3% supplement, are added to your donation.