I WISH I HAD A SPIRIT LIKE JOHN S. AKHWARI John Stephen Akhwari (born 1938 in Mbulu, Tanganyika) is a Tanzanian former marathon runner. He represented Tanzania in the marathon at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. While competing in the marathon in Mexico City, Akhwari cramped up due to the high altitude of the city. He had not trained at such an altitude back in his country. At the 19 kilometer point during the 42 km race, there was jockeying for position between some runners and he was hit. He fell badly wounding his knee and dislocated that joint plus his shoulder hit hard against the pavement. He however continued running, finishing last among the 57 competitors who completed the race (75 had started). The winner of the marathon, Mamo Wolde of Ethiopia, finished in 2:20:26. Akhwari finished in 3:25:27, when there were only a few thousand people left in the stadium, and the sun had set. A television crew was sent out from the medal ceremony when word was received that there was one more runner about to finish. As he finally crossed the finish line a cheer came from the small crowd. When interviewed later and asked why he continued running, he said, My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; they sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race. This is the spirit that all of us should have that no matter what obstacles we will meet on our way we will still be in the race, Dont Quit... you are a winner. its not the position that will matter but whether you finished the race. YOU ARE CALLED TO FINISH NOT ONLY TO START.
Posted on: Mon, 18 Nov 2013 12:19:12 +0000
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