Running News Daily
Top Ten Stories of the Week
8/4/2018

Global Run Challenge Profile: Kiranpal only jogged and never competed until he was sixty and now regularly places in his age division

RUN THE WORLD: Kiranpal Singh Dhody (62) has lived in Mumbai India since 1976. He is married and has three children.  

"My son is now 25 and has recently joined me in my business," says Kiranpal, "giving me much wanted relief to concentrate on my running."  

Kiranpal was a fitness freak from an early age and would jog regularly in the morning but never did any racing.  "Some boys, seeing me running on the tracks for hours every day, told me to take part in road races."  

So at the age of 60 he started running races and started winning prizes.  "At that point I realized that I have some endurance and power within me and can compete well with the other runners."   

He has participated in many road races 10k, 21k and has placed in his age-group many times.  "My Personal Best being Airtel Delhi Half Marathon in Nov 2016 clocking 1:43:40 getting 4th place in my age category."

The same year he ran the New Delhi 10k Challenge clocking 46:20 a personal best.  "But the one I love most is SCMM ( Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon/Half Marathon) the biggest marathon event of India," he says.  

In 2017 he finished fifth in his age-group clocking 1:49:24 for the half. "Since the last two years I started participating in Masters Athletics Championship and won Silver and Bronze medals in 10,000m and 5,000m and got selected for the Asia Masters Athletic Championship." Running is very important to him. 

"I get up every morning at 4:30 am and reach the tracks by 5:45am to start my daily practice by 6:00 am." 

So what is his secret I asked? "Secret to my success lies in being regular at the Sports Authority of India ground every morning at 6:00 am, except Sunday (being my rest day), dedication to running, determination and punctuality. Not eating any junk or processed foods or aerated drinks. I eat a lot of fruits in the morning and also in the evening, I eat green vegetables, sprouts, dry fruits, nuts, and juices."  

I asked him why he joined our challenge.   "Mr. Bob, you have done a very good thing by creating this Run The World event where we can all become examples for the young and old people so that they can also start running and thus improve their lifestyles,"  Kiranpal said. 

After getting his MBA and working for his brother for awhile he started his own business, Automobile Spare parts.  

"We are a wholesaler trading in spare parts for vehicles. My business is about 40K away from my residence and every morning after my workout is over I have to travel by local train.  The train is crowded and takes over an hour to reach my destination.  Being tired, many times I sleep in the train and do the same thing on my return back home in the evening."  

(07/29/18) Views: 1,062
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: Courtney Heiner started off as a 300m hurdler and became a 1500m National Champion

RUN THE WORLD: Courtney Heiner didn't make the high school basketball team, so she decided to do track instead.

"I started off as a 300 meter hurdler my sophomore year," says Courtney. "By my senior year, I started to really have a passion for running." Her coach convinced her to run cross country the fall of 2008. 

"That season we made it to the California State meet with only five varsity runners.  It was definitely an experience that I will never forget," she remembers.  She later met Jeanette Powless, the  women’s distance coach at American River College. 

"Jeanette really took me under her wing and showed me how to steeplechase.  After two years at American River, Jeanette helped me get a scholarship to Cal State Stanislaus and put me in contact with coach Taylor.

"There she became a five time All American and a National Champion in the women's 1500m.  Now Courtney nuns for the Strava Track Club coached by Dena Evans. 

"Dena is always so positive and we both know there’s more in the tank.  Hopefully, over this next year I can work hard to get one step closer to my goals."

Running is extremely important to her however,  "I think its always important to maintain a balance.  During heavy training blocks I run six days a week.  I almost always take Sundays off.  This helps me recover physically and mentally for the week," she says. 

I asked her what is her goal?  "My ultimate running goal would be to qualify for USA Outdoor Championships in the steeplechase.  There’s no doubt that it seems like a lofty goal, and sometimes it feels so far out of reach, but if you don’t dream big, then you miss out on a lot of incredible opportunities along the way.  

"Besides running and coaching she also works full time at her family business, they pretty much put a logo on anything. "It’s called A4 Promotions and we specialize in branded merchandise," she says.  

Courtney and her husband also enjoy spending time in the mountains.  So why did she join this challenge? "The Run the World Challenge is so cool and its really neat to be apart of it.  It’s so unique and that’s what really attracted me to it.  Its incredible to bring runners together to run 24,901 miles collectively. It’s been awesome to read about other runners and their story."                        

(07/28/18) Views: 703
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: Not only does running keep me sober, it helps me feel balanced says Henry Ward

RUN THE WORLD:  Henry Ward has been sober since November 17, 2008 and after his son was born in March of 2012 he noticed he was becoming squirrelly.

"Even though I wasn't drinking or using," Henry says.  "I became restless. Sort of like a dry drunk. I knew I needed to do something." 

He was going to visit a friend and Henry asked what they were going to do.  "My friend was thinking about running a 8k race.  He said he would run if I did. I said sign me up! I didn't even know how far an 8k was," Henry remembers. 

"I hated every step of that race, and vowed never to run again. Every time a runner past me, I was angry. I honestly wanted to trip or elbow all runners I saw.  But when I finished, I received a glass medallion.  I also had a feeling that I will never forget.  A feeling of accomplishment, and happiness, that prompted me to seek out another race as we drove back to my friend's house." Henry signed up for another 5k the following weekend and then a 4 miler.  He was hooked. Henry is from Boston and currently lives in Tempe, Arizona.  He is married and has a 6-year-old son.

"Family is always first, running comes second," he says.  He is a chef by trade.  "I get to sweat, lift things and log 30,000 steps at work alone!  Plus eat!  I love to eat.  I eat 4000 calories a day," Henry says. 

"I run to survive, to help me deal with life on life's terms.  When I run and exercise I feel alive and it helps my day flow. If I didn't find running I would be a neurotic mess."  He loves how he feels during and after running. 

"The Runner's high, and endorphin kick was like no other. I am thankful that I found running, and it has changed my life for the better. Not only does it keep me sober and it helps me feel balanced," he says. 

He believes that anyone can change, if they want to.  "If I can change, anyone can!  I have come along way, but know that I still have a lot of work to do on my personal character defects."  

He moved up from the 5K to doing ultras.  In 2017 he completed the 250K six day stage race, 4deserts Patagonia.  In 2018 he did the Boston Quad which is running the Boston Marathon four consecutive times. 

"The official marathon was number four. We had snow, freezing rain, 50 mile an hour winds and torrential downpours," Henry says.  He wants to help inspire others and motivate many along the way.  That is one of the reasons he joined the Run The World Challenge. 

"I think the challenge is really cool because I get to connect with people who are doing the same thing for different reasons, and people from around the world." 

He has two 100 mile races coming up and he hopes to qualify for the 2019 Badwater 135 race in death valley.  

(08/01/18) Views: 615
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: Running is an outlet for my highly competitive personality says Dave Ross

RUN THE WORLD:  "Running is my social network. Pretty much everyone that I'm connected to I met through running," says Dave Ross.  

But it didn’t start this way.  As a kid he was pretty much a nerd,  very shy and definitely a bookworm, not athletic at all.  "I turned out for the cross country team my freshman year of high school to make friends," he says.  

He ended up being a four year letterman in cross country and team captain his senior year and was awarded a scholarship to run cross country in college. Running has remained a major part of his life.  

"I don't think that I'd miss training if I couldn't run, but I'd definitely miss racing. Running is an outlet for my highly competitive personality. I love racing and watching others race. My knowledge of the sport gives me access to getting hired to help with commentary for some of the best races and track meets in the world," says Dave. 

In 1996 he ran 2:36:57 at the Portland Marathon training 50 miles weekly.   Some of Dave's best times include 15:35 5K, 53:54 10 miles, and 1:12:57 for the half marathon.  Dave works for Kaiser Permanente in the Portland area. 

He has two grown children.  "My wife Stephanie (also a runner) and I live in Beaverton, Oergon and we do a lot of our running around Nike World Headquarters." 

I asked him about the present running scene in the US.  "I think that it's on a pretty impressive upswing. Now that there is drug testing that's leveling the international playing field Americans are more competitive than ever," he says. 

"Folks are catching on and following the idea of structured training groups. The Bowerman Track Club, The Nike Oregon Project and groups like the Brooks Hansons are leading the way in American development." 

So why did Dave join our Run The World Challenge?  "I think that it's a cool idea. It's neat to see so many people come together toward a common goal," Dave commented.

(07/31/18) Views: 550
Bob Anderson

Our goal was to log enough miles to circle the globe in 30 days, that's 24,901 miles

Day 27 of of Run The World Global Run Challenge is coming to an end soon.  Our Mission is to celebrate running, motivate our team, inspire others and reach our goal.  As of right now our team has logged in 17,432 miles.  Our team ranging in age from 11 to 82 have run miles in 29 different countries.  26-year-old Willie Korir from Kenya has logged in the most miles with 553.18. The top American is 74-year-old Frank Bozanich who has logged 407 miles.  Jen Bayliss (US) is the top female with 265.24 miles.  Grace Padilla (also 47) is close behind with 238.99 miles.  74 of our team has hit the magic number, which is to log in 100 or more miles in 30 days and we have ten more who can reach that goal too.  The 5 mile a day average (which is 150 miles in 30 days) already has 34 in that group and another ten can achieve that mark as well.  There are a lot of stats to look at and we will share more later.  I am so proud of what our team has achieved.  There are so many wonderful inspiring stories to tell.  Our Run The World feed and our My Best Runs profile tell just some of the stories.  Many more to tell.  The big question is, are we going to make our goal?  We still could, but 30 days is up at the end of day Thursday.  In any case, we are going to reach our goal.  It could take us 40 days but we are going to do it.  Once we hit our goal we will record the days, hours and minutes (based on PDT) that it took us.  This will be the standard that we will go after on our next Run The World Challenge starting August 29.  In fact it would be fun to have two teams to challenge each other.  In any case, we are going to run a celebration lap (about 400m) this Sunday at our Golden Gate Double 8K and Ujena 5k/3k event.  It will be right before our awards.  We still need 7,477 miles to reach our goal.  Sounds like a big number by end of day Thursday or even by Sunday but I am hopeful.  Thanks for your support.  Bob Anderson, Run The World Challenge Team Leader.  (07/30/18) Views: 275
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: I get energy spreading through my entire body when I run says Malin Andersson

RUN THE WORLD: Malin Andersson has been running with her parents since she could walk.  "My brother and I biked next to my parents while they ran, then we started running with them and later they were biking next to us while we were running," says 31-year-old Malin who lives outside of Stockholm, Sweden.  She is co-owner of an important running website. "World's Marathons is an international marketplace for running events.  We help bring more international runners to running events," she says.  "We are driven by a team of dedicated tech and business talents based out of Sweden with offices in Lisbon and Jamaica."  She says she runs today just for herself to take good care of herself.  "I get energy spreading through my entire body when I run.  I love running mostly without feeling any pressure of having to perform," she says.  "At this point, I am not clocking myself since I am high performing in my business projects.  I enjoy running and love being out on the trails in the Swedish woods. The Swedish woods is one of my favorite place to run."  “Malin and I met in Paris in May,” says Bob Anderson.  “We decided to work together on several running related projects (My Best Runs and World’s Marathons).”  They did not talk about the Run The World Challenge because it had not been "born" yet.  "I think it is amazing how Bob Anderson have made Run The World Global Run Challenge happen in such a short time and being able to set this up with all these enthusiastic passionate people joining," Malin says.  (Photo taken during a meeting in Paris May 2018. Malin, Jean-Loup Fenaux (founder of Ahotu - an important running website) and Bob Anderson.  Earlier Malin and Bob met up with Paris Running Tours and ran from Notre Dame to the Eiffel Tower. (07/31/18) Views: 243
Bob Anderson

The Run The World Challenge is not over until it is over, until we login 24,901 miles says team leader Bob Anderson

The Run The World Challenge is one of the longest running events on the planet.  “Our team will log in enough miles to circle the world, that is 24,901 miles,” says team leader Bob Anderson.  

A team can not be no larger than 200 active runners.  “Our team needed members to run miles in at least 20 different countries (we have logged in miles in 29 countries). We also had to at least have one runner in each age group (14 and under, 15-19, 20-29, 30-39,40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79 and 80 plus).  We met all these Run The World Challenge standards,” says Bob.  

The goal was to do this in 30 days.  “What we did not know is that with a team this size, things happen, injuries, work and family situations, life challenges, or just running out of time to log.  So after 30 days our team has logged in 19,600 miles,” Bob says.  

This team is 78.7% of the way around the globe. “Our team of 163 active runners are amazing.” Willie Korir from Kenya is the leader and has been running two to four times per day to login his 630 miles.  

That is 21 miles per day.  Jen Baylis from the US has logged in 465.34 miles with Grace Padilla right behind her with 464 miles.  25 members of the team has logged in 200 miles or more.  45 have logged 150 miles or more and 85 a hundred or more.  

“One of our team members, Michael Wardian (photo) logged in 100.5 miles in one day.  No, we are not finished. We are not finished until we reach 24,901 miles,” says Bob.  Maybe during the next challenge a team will reach 24,901 miles in 30 days.  The next Run The World Challenge starts August 29.  

“In the meantime we are continuing until we reach our goal. We are hoping to reach it within 40 days or in ten more days,” says Bob Anderson.  

(08/02/18) Views: 135

USA Track & Field is expected to name the University of Oregon's Hayward Field in Eugene as the site for the 2020 U.S. Olympic trials

USA Track & Field is expected to name the University of Oregon's Hayward Field in Eugene as the site for the 2020 U.S. Olympic trials, according to a source with direct knowledge of the decision. The announcement is expected soon, perhaps as early as Thursday. The source was not authorized to discuss the decision and requested anonymity. Calls to TrackTown USA, the Eugene local organizing committee and the U.S. Olympic Committee were referred to USA Track & Field. USATF spokeswoman Jill Geer declined comment. Eugene has staged the Olympic trials six previous times, including in 2008, 2012 and 2016. This would be the first major meet at the reconstructed Hayward Field. The stadium has been torn down and will be rebuilt. The project is expected to be completed in April 2020. (08/02/18) Views: 63

Dean Karnazes is set to run the San Francisco Marathon 52.4-mile ultra, an event he started years ago

The San Francisco Ultramarathon is two full marathons; certainly enough to warrant a ride home. Yet, on the day of the event’s first year, Dean Karnazes, one of its creators, ran about three marathons. Karnazes, who still resides on the Kentfield/Ross border, ran to the Embarcadero for the start of the inaugural ultra seven years ago. Following the 52.4-mile feat, he headed home, on foot, reaching the Golden Gate Bridge before the lure of a passing bus was too enticing. Altogether, Karnazes estimates he ran between 75 and 80 miles in the 12-hour period. Karnazes, who has watched the event grow from eight people in its first year, is one of about 100 runners set to embark on the San Francisco Ultramarathon, which begins at 11 p.m. Saturday. The ultra, originally titled “Worth The Hurt,” is a fundraiser, with participants either raising $1,000 for a charity of their choice or paying a higher entrance fee, donating the difference to the race’s featured charities. The first loop begins in front of the Ferry Building Marketplace. The course is the San Francisco Marathon backward — sans the trek over the Golden Gate Bridge into Marin County — and includes navigating through overflowing bars in the Mission District and Haight-Ashbury. Runners finish, eat, change into dry clothes and often nap, then join the 9,000 marathoners at 5:30 a.m. There are expected to be 27,500 total participants in the ultra, marathon, both half marathons and 5K. “It’s been remarkable,” Karnazes said. “I still can’t believe that we get about 100 participants now at the race. We don’t really advertise it too much; it’s more word of mouth. Ultramarathoning is still very grassroots. I don’t think we’ll ever see it as a mass-participant event. “Dare I say it: it’s actually very fun.” Karnazes, 55, one of the most decorated ultra runners in the world, has proved his definition of fun differs from most. (07/27/18) Views: 57

Barabara Fieberg, who once struggled to do 5km shows women how to go the distance later in life

A Western Australian long-distance runner set to compete at the world ultramarathon championships hopes she can inspire other women to take up the sport. German-born nurse Barbara Fieberg only took up competitive running after her 40th birthday, admitting she previously struggled to run around the block. She has now completed 24 ultramarathons and is in training to represent Australia at the world championships in Croatia in September. Competitors will race over 100 kilometres — the equivalent of more than two full marathons. Seven men and seven women will represent Australia in Sveti Martin, following paths used a century ago by Croatian farm workers who regularly went on 100km errands. Never too late to take up running,she said. Ms Fieberg never believed she would have been capable of achieving what she had in the sport. "It would be great if I could inspire anyone to give it a go and a try," she said. (07/28/18) Views: 42