Today I saw a
facebook post by a friend – Mujib Mundewadi about
yesterday’s Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM-2015).
Mujib says:
“I did something different this
time at the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon. Paced a friend in the race. His
earlier best was 2.50 hrs. I got him to complete in 2.29 hrs. It was a lot of
pushing and shoving. Collecting water and Enerzal for him. Spotting the Volini
spray centres. Egging him on every time he stopped. 5k/10k/15k...every
milestone was a timing he had never done before. We listened to music,
chatted...anything to get his mind off the pain and cramps he was developing.
The last 1 k I was hoarse
screaming. It turned out I was pushing all the runners around us.
Bumped into another friend just
100 m before the finish. She looked very exhausted and about to collapse. Did
the best I could to help her cross the finish line.
Felt so happy and elated! At
times helping others can be so fulfilling than achieving one's own targets….”
I
called Mujib when I read his post asking his consent to share this more widely.
I was curious why he chose to pace this particular friend.
Having
finished the last half marathon at 2:04 hours Mujib had no particular objective
for this one. 1 km into the run he met his old college friend, who was
participating after a 2 year gap because of health issues. He said to Mujib
that his dream was to improve his personal best of 2:50 hrs and complete
SCMM2015 in less than 2:30 hrs. Mujib found a purpose for his own run in
inspiring & pacing his friend.
I was very inspired to hear Mujib’s story. I believed that there may be a story behind Atul’s experience. I had a question, what did he do earlier to get this kind of support. And voila, a friend found Atul’s story and shared it on facebook as well! Here it is:
Atul Sethi says:
“Going after a 2 year break and with a previous best of 2
hrs and 46 minutes, I was unsure of how my body will respond. Also with the previous
fortnight being one where the right foot was getting regular cramps and with
work keeping me busy the entire month, I knew that it would be a miracle to
even cross the finishing line. And a miracle it did happen to be (not one but
many). From managing to catch a train in the nick of time to bumping in to my
running mate from the past in the local train, I found that things were working
out a certain way.
During the train journey I got a call from my college
friend Mujib (who had been my inspiration to participate in the half marathon).
He wished me and we decided to catch up post the race as has been the case in
the past runs.
As the race began, I found that my right foot started
behaving and I could get into a good rhythm. Within the first one kilometre,
Mujib slipped in next to me and decided that he will run this race with me.
This was
the first time that I was going to run alongside a friend and someone who has
significant experience of these races. And what a race it turned out to be. The
body swung in to action. Mujib provided all the right tips at the right times
and we had crossed 10 kms in 1 hour and 5 minutes. From setting targets for
every 5 kms to adapting our plans to the emerging conditions to responding to
all the supportive crowds and co runners who were a part of the experience, we
had crossed 20 kms in 2 hours and 22 mins.
It was in the last one km that Mujib got all his
experience to work and helped me sustain the required pace to cross the finish
line before the 2 hours and 30 min mark. The moment and the ensuing emotions
will forever be a part of my life and will stand as a testimony to how anything
can be achieved if we are willing to give life our best shot.
My mind also raced back to my first half marathon where I
had set a target of completing the race in 3 hours. During that race I was
close to crossing the finishing line within 3 hours. However 300 metres before
the finish line was this young lad who had completely stalled. He could see the
finish line but could not take a step further.
As I crossed him, I realised that he needed help. So I
retraced my steps and told him that the only way I will cross the finish line
is with him. We waited for close to a minute and I then told him to put his arm
across my shoulder and at least start walking. He did so and inch by inch, step
by step we moved towards the finish line and crossed it.
And while I missed the 3 hour mark by a minute, I had the
satisfaction of a race well run where I could help someone else reach his goal.
And this marathon saw me getting so much help in achieving what was an
important milestone for me…”
Mujib shares that the SCMM 2015
has been most memorable and joyful rather than the last 10 marathons where he
consistently improved his personal best timing. He has now decided to run the
Delhi marathon to improve his personal best and the Mumbai marathon to pace
others and have them achieve their dream finish timing.
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This is a live example of Priceless Contribution. May
this story inspire you to contribute to others’ success and may lots of people
rejoice in your success
