My First Marathon(马拉松)

A month before my first marathon, one of my ankles was injured and this meant not running for two weeks, leaving me only two weeks to train. Yet, I was determined to go ahead.

I remember back to my 7th year in school. In my first P.E. class, the teacher required us to run laps and then hit a softball. I didn’t do either well. He later informed me that I was “not athletic”.

The idea that I was “not athletic” stuck with me for years. When I started running in my 30s, I realized running was a battle against myself, not about competition or whether or not I was athletic. It was all about the battle against my own body and mind. A test of wills!

The night before my marathon, I dreamt that I couldn’t even find the finish line. I woke up sweating and nervous, but ready to prove something to myself.

Shortly after crossing the start line, my shoe laces(鞋带) became untied. So I stopped to readjust. Not the start I wanted!

At mile 3, I passed a sign: “GO FOR IT, RUNNERS!”

By mile 17, I became out of breath and the once injured ankle hurt badly. Despite the pain, I stayed the course walking a bit and then running again.

By mile 21, I was starving!

As I approached mile 23, I could see my wife waving a sign. She is my biggest fan. She never minded the alarm clock sounding at 4 a.m. or questioned my expenses on running.

I was one of the final runners to finish. But I finished! And I got a medal. In fact, I got the same medal as the one that the guy who came in first place had.

Determined to be myself, move forward, free of shame and worldly labels(世俗标签), I can now call myself a “marathon winner”.

Why did the author mention the P.E. class in his 7th year?

An expert on the effects of music on exercise, Dr Costas Karageorghis, claims that listening to music while running can boost performance by up to 15%. To put this theory to the test, I took part in a special Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon, which had groups of musicians playing at various points along the route.

As I lined up at the start with almost 4,000 other runners, a singer sang an inspiring song for us. It may explain why I got off to a good start. I only came eighth in the end, though, even though I’d just spent six months training hard. 【小题1】 However, it turns out that all the training may have affected my response to the music; according to the research, the benefits of listening to music decrease with the level of intensity of the running.

“Elite athletes,” says Karageorghis, “tend to focus inwardly when they are running.” According to him, most other runners look for stimulus and distractions from what is going on around them. “Judging by your time,” he says, “you are one of the former.” It is true. Apart from the song at the start, when I was standing still, I can barely remember the music played along the course. The first act I passed, a folk group, made me smile, and at one point I found myself running in time to the beat of some hard rock. 【小题2】 I can’t say they help my performance very much. But what did other runners make of the music?

Adam Bull usually runs marathons with no music and little crowd support. “【小题3】With the upbeat bands, you find yourself running to the beat, which helps. It brings out people to cheer you on.” Rosie Bradford was also a convert. “As we ran past one band and they started playing These Boots Were Made for Walking, everybody suddenly went faster.”

The only person I found who was less than happy with the music was Lois Lloyd. “There wasn’t enough of it, and I found it wasn’t loud enough, so I ran with an MP3 player,” she said. “【小题4】” Karageorghis is not surprised when I tell him. “There are many advantages to using your own player, rather than relying on the music on the course,” he says. “It gives you a constant stimulus, rather than just an occasional one, and you can tailor the playlist to your taste.”

One runner told me there was a direct correlation between the quality of the music on the course and how much it helped. But quality, of course, is subjective. I remember feeling annoyed as I ran past one band playing Keeping On Running. 【小题5】Of course, the music was not only there to help runners break their personal bests (although sadly it was unable to help me beat time), but to provide a sense of occasion, draw out the crowds and create a carnival atmosphere. 【小题6】 As I left, people were beginning to relax after the run, listening to an excellent rock band. It was a fitting way to end the day.

Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim and Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi were competing in the high jump on Sunday when they reached a stalemate (僵局). Both men had managed to jump over a surprising 2.37 meters with no faults along the way. However, after three attempts neither managed the next level of 2.39 meters.

An Olympic official suggested a jump-off between the two friends and rivals (竞争对手) to determine who would get the gold medal. But Barshim had another plan to reward their efforts.