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To paraphrase Shakespeare: friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears --I come to praise charity runners, not to bury them!
As a Maryland Chapter Trustee in the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, one of my responsibilities is to find ways to get people involved in Team In Training, the world's largest endurance sports training program. The program provides training to run or walk a whole or half marathon or participate in a triathlon or century bike ride. TNT staff, coaches, and volunteers are widely recognized for their professionalism and ethical conduct. It was therefore, of course, greatly dismaying to learn that a coach is being investigated for potential improprieties at the Marine Corps Marathon.
It is has been said that one bad apple spoils the barrel' , meaning that a bad person, policy, etc, can ruin everything around it. That is only the case if no action is taken. While the facts on the above inquiry are still being researched, rest assured that action will be taken in this matter as appropriate. And there will continue to be instances of unprofessional and unethical conduct within the marathon community -- but no one can seriously argue that they fall solely within the purview of charity participants. So lets all keep some perspective and take a look at the big picture.
In fact, it helps marathons to have charity teams like TNT involved.
But lets answer the easier question first.
Does it hurt anyone if a slow runner who might miss the 6-hour time limit is bussed forward and allowed to show up in the results at 5:59:35? In my opinion, yes. As the Marine Corps Marathon Race Director puts it, its about distance 26.2 miles & plain and simple&its about running the distance, staying on course, and receiving no assistance from outside sources .
Back to the Future: do these participants become lifelong runners and/or are they just working to complete a once-in-a-lifetime event, after which they'll never run another step again? In my opinion, that depends just as it does for participants who are not charity runners. In our case, our athletes proudly sport "Team in Training" shirts as they sweat their way to the finish line. They may look like seasoned runners, but not all of them start out that way, and some have no prior experience in marathons. I myself was a complete novice to triathlons and marathons before I joined TNT four years ago. Like many of my teammates, Ive been shaped into a competitive athlete by our coaches and mentors. We meet several times a week, as a team and in smaller groups, and spend others days during the rest of the week working out on our own. By giving us rigorous but realistic schedules and sticking by our sides, they turn even inexperienced athletes into serious competitors.
Now, as a mentor, Im going to help others make the same strides. And, with others, Im going to draw more people into the sport. So, it helps marathons to have charity teams like TNT involved.
A famous author once wrote that the key is to keep company with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best -- TNT is filled with these kinds of people. It is because of the funds these people raised, and the cancer treatments they made possible, that I am not only a marathoner, but something even better. I can take away from my experiences three of the most important words in my world, an idea that is at the core of everything that TNT is doing. The three words without capitalization, shouting or exotic punctuation are simply these: I survived cancer.
TNTs slogan is Change Lives, Starting with Your Own . Because really...what else is more important?
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