‘We didn’t practice in darkness and only prepared during thunderstorms, snow and cold this year,’ said coach and runner Simon Engelberts. ‘And one of our runners, Al-Amin O Juma, joined the team only ten hours before the start. He managed to run 7.3 km at 3am, beating 266 other runners.’
Their goal was to run with a smile on their face, and they finished more than exuberate. ‘With 17 nationalities and 15 first-time ITC participants, we broke our own record!’ said Wan Bakx, who, together with Engelberts, coached the 25-member team to its successful finish. In total, 18 ITC students and 8 ITC staff ran and/or cycled. Also supporting the team were drivers, friends and family, countless ITC alumni, and previous Batavierenrace participants. ‘Everyone on the team played a valuable role, as runner, cyclist, driver, supporter, coach, captain or attendant,’ said Bakx.
Many participants surprised not only themselves, but the coaches as well. ‘We only started training in January,’ said Engelberts, ‘and some students had little sports background and not much time to train. Some had no money for running shoes or expensive sports clothing.’
‘It was a fantastic night run!’ said Purity Mbaabu, the kick-starter for the team. She ran the first 3.6 km of the race at midnight on Friday, capturing 69th place. ‘As long as I am in Enschede, I will never miss the race!’
‘The last two kilometers were a little hard for me,’ admitted four-time Batavierenrace veteran Xiaogang Ma. ‘As I approached the finish, for half a second I realized that this may be my last Batavierenrace. I never wanted this to end, so I slowed down, but quickly the ambition for a good performance soon inspired me to rush to the finish.’ Ma ran 8.1 km, clocking in at 42 minutes, 26 seconds.
The Run4Fun team was in the top 100 through the first eight stages. At stage four, Bakx hired a pacer to pass Engelberts at a speed of 16 km per hour to help him cover the longest distance of the race – 11.2 km – at an even faster pace. Engelberts finished at 43 minutes, 17 seconds. After stage nine, the team dropped to 179, but then picked up the pace and eventually moved to 120th place by the 19th stage. In the end, after 25 stages, they made a spectacular finish in the top half, coming in 159th. The team ran the total 177 km in 15 hours, 41 minutes, and 39 seconds.
Arnold Thumba, who only started running for the first time in January, had a dramatic sprint to the gate. ‘With only two kilometers to go, I lost all my energy and couldn’t take another step. But then my cyclist, Laurens Walet, kept saying, ‘You will make it. You are almost there!’ And suddenly, it was as if I was possessed and actually beat two other runners. I wish my wife had been there to see me.’ Thumba’s family had to cheer him from Malawi.
Unfortunately Mark van der Meijde, an experienced speed-cyclist, who ran one stage and cycled two others, suffered a muscle rupture and had to rest for the next four to six weeks. And how about the others? ‘Seventeen different countries and cultures all shared the experience of the Batavierenrace and enjoyed running together,’ summed up Filipino runner Alvin Paul Dirain, who ran the last stage and brought the team to the final gate. ‘What great camaraderie! All thanks to the perfect support from Coaches Bakx and Engelberts.’
Bakx, however, is not one to stop smiling or running. His last words to his winning team were, ‘Remember to show up at the Run4Fun training this Wednesday afternoon!’
Despite the physical, emotional and mental challenges, the ITC Run4Fun team finished in the top half of the relay race competition. Photo: Gijs van Ouwerkerk
