Throughout the course of the weekend, over 30,000 runners registered for the 52nd BMW Dallas Marathon Festival.
It was really challenging. Although it was my first half-marathon, I enjoyed myself and completed all three. So on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, I worked. Thus, I’m quite pleased of myself,” said runner Brittany Rainey.
The half-marathon walk, half-marathon, and full marathon were among the activities held on Sunday.
Over two thousand people volunteered for the events.
“I kept telling myself that I could succeed, like, you know, like finishing something. Runner Kamari Palmer remarked, “This is like a great accomplishment, because I went through a lot in my life.”
Benefiting the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children is the racing weekend. It was a full circle moment for some.
“Being able to run again, and Scottish Rite gave me back my life, so just being able to show that here is you know pretty inspiring,” Jasmine Tran, a runner, said.
Tran was a Scottish Rite patient once. She required surgery for an additional muscle in her right foot and an extra bone in both of her feet.
At the age of sixteen, she underwent her first surgery in 2017. She underwent a second one in 2018, and a third in 2020.
“l was kind of like on crutches in a wheelchair for 3-4 months and then walked in a boot,” Tran explained.
After a six-month recuperation, Tran stated she underwent her last surgery.
“You’re free, my physicians told me. I grabbed my sneakers and went for a very, very slow run because I wasn’t in any pain,” Tran recalled.
She now expressed her pride in competing in the half-marathon alongside other runners.
“I came out here mostly to support the hospital that has given me so much. They have not only provided me with financial support but also with inspiration and hope,” the woman remarked. “It’s shown me that I can do a lot more than I thought and it’s also just such a privilege to go out and to run and move my body without pain.”
