Running. A Passion.

Ever since I picked up running in primary/grade school, I took it lightly and viewed it just as another way to keep fit. However, I found out that I was actually quite good at it and decided to pursue it further and eventually went for trainings to represent my house. Then, being human, this sense of EGO and WINNING MENTALITY came into play and I took each race very seriously.These hugely negative emotions led to me being disappointed/depressed with myself if I lost a race or I also ended up being angry at an opponent and it persisted all the way through grade school. However, as I became more mature and entered secondary school, I began to learn how to take defeat with an open heart as winning or losing was part of the game. I also began to learn how to respect an opponent who is potentially a better runner than me and be more humble. However, it also brought  up some negative effects on my self-confidence and this affected my god given gift of long legs but this was to change during the year 2005. I was running against better opponents in both the 800 and 1500 m events,however I managed to win those two events after trusting myself and having confidence.

My perception of running was changed altogether and I had this urge to try to inspire people to try and build some passion in running. The first opportunity for me to achieve this urge was during my SPORTS day at my school. As the TRACK captain, I was given the task to recruit members to come join running. This feat was certainly not easy as I did not exactly look like an athletic guy. I was tall and awfully lanky and this brought out doubts in my fellow house mates. These doubts vanished into thin air when the first training session took place, during my welcoming speech, I urged the future STAR athletes to have confidence in the ability,a strong mentality and most importantly run with heart and passion and determination. It did not matter whether u were short,fat,tall or thin, what mattered was the effort you put in and the desire to achieve the goal you set out to achieve. It did not matter whether you were on the podium or not, if you gave your best, you are a winner. Together we worked hard,urging each other on, and I am delighted to say, they fought hard in their respective events and came back victorious.

The joy of watching someone run with passion and determination even when they were given no hope was truly satisfying. After finishing secondary school, my running took a downfall due to the hectic life of A-levels and only resurfaced after I joined IMU. During my four semesters so far in IMU, I learnt a lot from dedicated runners who were not only my seniors but my juniors as well. I learnt that even great ones fall in battle and even if we fall we should be gracious and humble in defeat. I also learnt from the MILERS club that even though we might be fast, we should always consider that there are slower runners and we should try our best to encourage them to push themselves. During my 3rd semester in IMU, I ran for the vice-captain of Taurus, although not many had confidence in my ability, I took it as a challenge to try and prove myself, I also took up the challenge of TRACK captain once again albeit having not much confidence. I was truly surprised and amazed at the level of effort,spirit,teamwork and sportsmanship that not only the track team put in but also all the other house members from various sports showed during the course of the 6-8 weeks of IMU cup. After the 4x400 m race which my house miraculously won gold medal due to the strong teamwork and determination combined with a tinge of talent, I was called a STAR MAN. This was a blessing in disguise as it indirectly inspired some of my friends to pick up running. One of them even improved his time in 10 km by 5 whole minutes! AMAZING to say the least..

Okay, I should not drag this post too long, bottom line is, we should not be too depressed/discouraged if there are faster runners than us. We should take heart from them and get inspired by them. To the more faster runners, I urge you guys to be more humble and portray more sportsmanship. Running should not be viewed as a burden to keep fit. Running should done with passion!! Cheers.