Marathon Women

Addendum to a previous post: During the opening ceremonies, the Peking U. Students were cheering for Iraq because, in my friend’s words, “they know their country is going through the pain of war.”

After another late night on the town, I managed to struggle out of bed early. The women’s marathon conveniently cuts right across campus, approximately 200 yards from my bed. I bounded across this distance like an overeager gazelle. As the first place runner approached, I snapped a photo through the trees:


As you can see, not the most poetic of photographs. Subsequent attempts also proved fruitless. I quickly gave up, and just watched. Eyes inevitably beat camera. These women were incredible, muscles tensing and shifting with each step, simply flying by. And you could see the effort written in their faces: this race is foot pounds road meets pain. Another thing that struck me was the power of sport to attract such a diverse group of women. It's a shame it went by so fast.

More photos (not the marathon, more exciting stuff)! GoldenBearTri