DOHA (Qatar): When the sports world including the high-profile Olympics and the football leagues experienced a complete locked down due to coronavirus outbreak, a South African couple ran a marathon on the balcony of their Dubai apartment to boost people’s confidence.
41-year-old Collin Allin and wife Hilda covered the 42.2-km distance by running more than 2,100 laps of their 20m long balcony from dawn on Saturday.
A stopwatch provided by the couple showed they covered the distance in five hours, nine minutes and 39 seconds.
“We did it … #balconymarathon,” Allin said on Instagram, congratulating his wife on her first ever marathon and thanking the virtual crowd that cheered them on.
“Thank you for all the love and support for doing something silly… was great to have you all along for the ride,” he said.
The couple’s 10-year-old daughter Geena acted as race director, putting up signs marking “start” and “turn around” and providing her parents with water and snacks as well as inspirational music.
The pandemic has wiped out international sporting schedules and triggered lockdowns that have limited options for outdoor exercise in many countries, but enterprising people have found ways to fit in a workout.
Elisha Nochomovitz, a 32-year-old who lives near the French city of Toulouse, ran a marathon on his balcony which measures just seven metres.
He reportedly managed the feat in six hours and 48 minutes, nearly double his best marathon finish time.
