(Apr 16, 2103, (by Samuel Getachew))--While growing up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, I knew very little about Boston. Yet I knew everything to know about the Boston Marathon. I understood the Boston Marathon to be where the world came to compete and meet a personal milestone.
I understood that even a country that is as poor and powerless as Ethiopia can compete, win and offer a slew of best athletes as it did yesterday in Lelisa Desisa when the Ethiopian athlete became the latest champion. He earned $150,000 and the traditional olive wreath bringing delight to a country that places high regards on its athletes.
I also learned via the spirit of the Boston Marathon that winning is not a "sprint but a marathon" -- in sports as well as in life. In Ethiopia, countless people would celebrate the return of the athletes with handwritten signs that read: "Welcome back from Boston Marathon."
This year, the marathon celebrated its 117th anniversary and according to the organizers, it still is one of the six World Marathon Majors attracting half a million spectators and 25,000 runners annually from around the world and many from Canada.
Then, the spirit of the Boston Marathon was forever changed when multiple explosions killed three, according to multiple media outlets, including an eight-year-old, and injured many. According to CNN, "at least 110 people being treated, at least eight of them in critical condition and 14 in serious condition. At least eight of the patients are children." Read more from The Huffington Post Canada »
I understood that even a country that is as poor and powerless as Ethiopia can compete, win and offer a slew of best athletes as it did yesterday in Lelisa Desisa when the Ethiopian athlete became the latest champion. He earned $150,000 and the traditional olive wreath bringing delight to a country that places high regards on its athletes.
I also learned via the spirit of the Boston Marathon that winning is not a "sprint but a marathon" -- in sports as well as in life. In Ethiopia, countless people would celebrate the return of the athletes with handwritten signs that read: "Welcome back from Boston Marathon."
This year, the marathon celebrated its 117th anniversary and according to the organizers, it still is one of the six World Marathon Majors attracting half a million spectators and 25,000 runners annually from around the world and many from Canada.
Then, the spirit of the Boston Marathon was forever changed when multiple explosions killed three, according to multiple media outlets, including an eight-year-old, and injured many. According to CNN, "at least 110 people being treated, at least eight of them in critical condition and 14 in serious condition. At least eight of the patients are children." Read more from The Huffington Post Canada »
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