December 20, 2002
A Challenge For The Fleet Of Foot
Join a Winning Boston Marathon Team
BOSTON – Training for the Boston Marathon certainly provides runners with health benefits. Some even run fast enough to help improve the health of others.
The Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge (DFMC) team is looking for qualified runners who want to add a new dimension to their training by running for others as well as themselves. Runners who have run a qualifying time at a certified marathon since Sept. 28, 2001, can join the DFMC team and run to raise money that supports researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston These researchers have taken on another type of challenge, curing cancer.
Each Challenge runner agrees to raise at least $2,000 by June 2003, a sum that is easier to raise than most think. The average amount raised per runner in 2002 was $6000 and 100 percent of the money goes to the Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Research done by Barr Investigators addresses many types of cancer affecting people of all ages and translates to increased cure rates, improved quality of life and hopefully, one day, "a world without cancer".
The Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge provides participants with unparalleled support services. The training program is led by 1976 Boston Marathon winner Jack Fultz. There is an extensive calendar of group training runs and social gatherings as well as special access to leading health and fitness facilities throughout the Boston area. On race day, DFMC runners enjoy exclusive use of an indoor facility in Hopkinton on marathon morning, and a post-marathon recovery zone with showers and massages. Runners with the DFMC also enjoy a unique camaraderie that results from working toward a common cause.
Dana-Farber runners receive commemorative DFMC apparel and race singlets. The distinctive singlets let the huge crowds lining the course know of the runners' extra dedication, ensuring that DFMC runners receive heartfelt cheers as they pass. Nowhere is the cheering louder than in Kenmore Square where Dana-Farber patients, families and friends gather to give the DFMC runners a boost for the final mile. Most DFMC participants dedicate their run to someone in their life who has battled cancer.
Qualified runners make up nearly 20 percent of the DFMC team. These runners have helped the DFMC enjoy tremendous growth and success since the program began in 1990. The DFMC has raised nearly $16 million in the 13 years of the program. The goal of the 2003 Marathon Challenge is to raise $3 million for the Barr Program.
Interested qualified runners are encouraged to call the DFMC (617) 632-1970 or e-mail dfmc@dfci.harvard.edu for an application as soon as possible in order to take full advantage of the program's benefits.
