Dubai: When Indian members of the Dubai Creek Striders (DCS), a group of regular runners, decided to usher in India's 65th Independence Day with a midnight run from the Indian Consulate in Dubai on Sunday night, it was meant to be a unique expression of love for their motherland.
The real medal
But no one perhaps could sum it up better than Mohammad Attia an Egyptian, who chose to run for India along with them. Drawing on Dan Gable's words, he said: "Freedom is similar to running for the gold medals which aren't really made of gold. They're made of sweat, determination and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.
A food inspector with the Food Control Section at Sharjah Municipality, Attia, who also happens to be a DCS member, said running for India was one of the best experiences of his life.
"I took part because I have noticed the amount of spirit and affection among Indians for their country is very much similar to Egyptians. We get along quite well," he said.
"Throughout the run, I met and made good friends with the Indian community and I am looking forward to learning their culture," he said, adding, "I hope to celebrate many more Independence Days with them."
Surendhu Govindan of DCS said the response to the run was overwhelming. "We were around 40 people and began our run at 10.30 pm on Sunday night to coincide with 12 midnight in India. We covered 11.6 km and finished at around 12.30 am," he said.
"When some of us Indians of the DCS proposed the idea to Consul General Sanjay Verma, he readily supported us," said Govindan.
"We were really moved and inspired by the participation of non-regular runners, including women, who ran the full distance in the scorching heat and humid conditions."
The run was flagged off by Verma, even as members of the Punjab Young Boys' Association drummed up a festive spirit with their dhols.
