Samen Sterk

Race Day

Sunday 16th Mar

Here we goooo! 🏃🏻‍♀️ This morning we had agreed to meet for an early breakfast at 6am in order to have plenty of time to get ready, and to arrive timely to drop our stuff at the wardrobe and have a very light run towards the starting point. What a fun vibe in the city already in the AM. You could spot runners everywhere and people would start conversations if it’s your first full marathon or where you come from.. Jonas starting time was 15 min before mine, so we both went to our separate starting boxes. I could still feel my nerves but also the excitement. I did some stretches until our box slowly started moving forward towards the starting point, while a nice live performance was singing “Barcelona” from Freddy Mercury through the speakers to hype everyone up for their race. The race itself I started slowly. I hardly had trained recently due to a lot of work travel and of course because my focus the last months definitely was more about wanting to see and support my mom (and dad who is her absolute rock). But, getting slowly getting into the race, I found a pace that felt comfortable and tried to keep a steady run. There were some moments where pain acted up and I had to remind myself “it’s all a mind game” and who I’m doing this for. But to be fair, overall, it went really smooth and everything around the race by people playing music, cheering, the great volunteers handing out water and energy, and of course your support on this action page, it gives lots of extra energy too. Anyway, it was a wonderful experience. As a reward we just went for some great Spanish tapas with a delish wine! In the end, I finished the race in 4 hours 2 minutes and 40 seconds and I think I’m still a bit on a high from it! Thanks thanks thanks for your donation to the charity and for support!!l

Race Day -1

Saturday 15th Mar

Here we are, in beautiful Barcelona! 💕 Today, Race Day -1, we did a warm-up run which was organised by the Marathon of Barcelona and labeled “Breakfast Run”; which basically was a nice slow and short run the day before the big race to calm the nerves and move the legs a bit. And afterwards a cute little breakfast was offered. The energy at the event was really great! Lots of excited people, the sun was out, and, even though it was cold, it was lovely to see a blue sky and feel the sun. We walked home after lunch, a huge plate of pasta, and it felt so good to be back here (I lived here back in 2008-2009). Just strolling the streets and absorbing the city, I was so in my element! As much as the city has changed, it somehow still feels like “my Barca” with the stunning architecture and lovely city vibes. Jonas, my friend I’m running this race with, and I have been quite nervous all day. Not doing too much to save our energy and constantly thinking about how we can fill up with as many carbs as we can. Believe me, I don’t think I can eat another plate of pasta for a while. But let’s hope we’ll reap the benefits tomorrow :) So… as per the famous quote “life happens as you plan it”, I’ll start tomorrow with less training sessions than anticipated, but definitely with at least triple the motivation 🏃🏻‍♀️💪🏽 Thanks a million for your generous donations to the KWF foundation and for your support! ❤️🍀 I’ll run tomorrow with a heart filled with hope, strength, and love for all those fighting, supporting people, and sadly also missing people. And especially for my mom, of course 💪🏽❤️⚓️

Rennen voor leven, rennen tegen kanker

Tuesday 11th Mar

[English translation below]

Hallo, welkom op mijn actie pagina!

20 oktober jl. schreef ik me in voor de marathon van Barcelona, as zondag 16 maart is het zo ver. Een hele marathon.. iets waar ik altijd met veel ontzag naar keek en misschien wel van droomde, maar nooit voor durfde te gaan. Want jeetje…wat is dat ver! 

Een halve, ja dat lukte me wel. Maar om dan nog eens die hele afstand nog een keer te rennen… 

Toch, dat vinkje op mijn bucketlist wilde ik aftikken. Dus schreef ik me in en was ik trouw aan een trainingsschema begonnen. 

Net zoals ik bij andere races had gedaan, wilde ik nu ook weer geld inzamelen en koos ik weer voor het KWF. Zoveel naasten, collega’s, vrienden, familie zijn getroffen of hebben te maken met die vreselijke ziekte, en dit leek daarom een mooi doel om mijn race aan te verbinden.

22 januari trof het noodlot nu ook onze familie. Na maanden zoeken naar een diagnose, sloeg de grond onder onze voeten weg toen we hoorden dat mijn lieve moeder ook met deze ziekte geconfronteerd werd en nu hartstikke hard vecht tegen deze verschrikkelijke ziekte. 

Het eerste wat mama zei toen ik vertelde dat ik voor een goed doel zou rennen, was dat er zoveel oorlogen en zoveel ziektes zijn, dat ik die ook moest overwegen. 

En natuurlijk, ik zou willen dat we aan al die mooie doelen, voor vrede, voor gelijkheid, tegen oorlog, voor genezing van minder bekende ziektes, etc,.. dat we bewust zijn, aandacht, en fondsen zouden kunnen werven. 

Maar voor deze race, ren ik voor het leven. En ren ik tegen kanker. Ren ik speciaal voor mijn moeder, die zo hard vecht. En voor al die anderen die met deze ziekte te maken hebben, die anderen steunen, en die mensen moeten missen. 

Mama; apa datang di muka, jangan unduré!! 

Maju 💪🏽

English translation:

Hello, welcome to my fundraising page!

Last year, October 20th, I signed up for the Barcelona Marathon. Coming Sunday, March 16th, the event will take place. A full marathon… something I had always looked at with great admiration, maybe even dreamed of, but never dared to pursue. Because well… that’s far! A half marathon? That, I could manage. But to then run that whole distance again…

Still, I wanted to check this off my bucket list and figured the time is now. So, I signed up and committed to a training plan.

Just like in previous races, I wanted to raise money again, and once more, I chose to support KWF (the Dutch Cancer Society) because so many loved ones—colleagues, friends, family—have been affected by, or are dealing with, this terrible disease. It felt like a meaningful cause to dedicate my race to.

On January 22, tragedy struck our own family. After months of searching for a diagnosis why my mom was in so much agony, our world collapsed when we learned that my mom was also confronted with this disease. Now, she is fighting with all her strength against this terrible illness.

The first thing my mom said when I told her I was running for charity was that there are so many wars and so many diseases that I should consider all of those as well. And of course, I wish we could raise awareness, attention, and funds for all those important causes—peace, equality, ending wars, research to lesser-known diseases, and so much more.

But for this race, I am running for life. I am running against cancer. I am running especially for my mother, who is fighting so hard right now. And for all those affected by this disease, for those who are supporting someone, and for those who have sadly lost someone. 

Mama; apa datang di muka, jangan unduré!

Maju 💪🏽