“A year ago, I could barely run one-eighth of a mile. Now, I can say that I finished a marathon,” said School of Education sophomore Liza Gosselin.
Gosselin successfully ran in the 34th annual Cape Cod Marathon on Sunday, Oct. 30, finishing 172nd out of 231 runners in her division with a time of 4:56:51, according to the official Cape Cod Marathon website.
Gosselin said the money she raised from the race went to the Multiservice Eating Disorders Association, a Newton-based program that provides support groups for people with eating disorders.
“I was first exposed to this charity when we worked with them during [the First-Year Student Outreach Project] this year, and I felt that it is a worthy program to raise money for,” Gosselin said.
Gosselin is one of several Boston University students who have participated in marathons to raise money for local causes, including education, medical treatment and other pertinent issues.
Amanda Matteo, a graduate student in the Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said she ran in the Newport Amica Marathon on Oct. 16 for Emmanuel’s Education Foundation, which aims to support students with disabilities worldwide.
“It took me four months to train. I ran a half marathon about halfway through to ensure I stayed on track,” said Matteo, who finished the race with a final time of 4:26:02.
The money Matteo raised benefits the efforts of founder Emmanual Yeboah, she said. Yeboah, a disabilities activist from Ghana, is working to build a fully accessible school in Ghana where children with disabilities can obtain an education for free. The school is also expected to have 40 percent of the staff be disabled, she said.
College of Communication sophomore Bryan Sih said he ran a 26.2-mile race in the Hartford Marathon on Oct. 15 to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Sih raised about $1,000 throughout his campaign, through which he said he gave people several incentives to donate.
“At the $500 dollar mark, I shaved my head after growing my hair out for a while,” Sih said. “For $1,000, I dyed my hair red . . . I looked pretty stupid for weeks after the event, but it was for a good cause.”
While Sih said there were many days when he did not want to run, the cause motivated him to complete campaign.
“It kept me motivated because I didn’t want to let people down, namely the people whose memory I was running for and the people who donated,” Sih said.
Sih finished the race fifth out of 16 runners in his division with a time of 3:38:27, according to the official ING Hartford Marathon website.
“When I crossed the finish line, I was the happiest I’ve ever been,” he said.
Grosselin, who started running in January, said she initially took it up as a way to live healthier.
“I wanted to improve my mental and physical health to be better and stronger than I have been in the past,” she said.
Training by herself, Gosselin prepared herself for the 10K run and half-marathon she ran in over the summer. She attributes her success to the support she had from her family and friends.
“All my friends were surprised when I told them I wanted to run a marathon, but they said that I could totally do it,” she said.
While Gosselin her experience in the marathon as “painful,” she said she felt a rush of relief when she crossed the finish line.
“The hard work for those six to seven months really paid off,” Gosselin said. “I got to eat a lot of waffles right after finishing the race.”
Gosselin said she hopes to participate in the Boston Marathon as well, unlike in previous years when she watched from the sidewalk.
“Although I am going to have to train more and run a few more marathons in order to qualify for the Boston Marathon, I hope to run in it within the next few years,” Gosselin said.
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