Expatriate Bangladeshis Participation marathon running in Canada

Started in Canada in 1963, the Calgary Marathon is currently Canada's longest and most popular marathon. The race has been voted Alberta's 'Best Road Race' a total of eight times since 2019.

About 4,500 contestants participated in the competition held at 7:00 a.m. local time in Canada on Sunday (May 28).

600 to 1000 people participate in Full Marathon (42.2 km) category. Expatriate Bangladeshis also participated in it for the third time. Among them, Zahid Haque, a prominent expatriate Bangladeshi theater director living in Calgary, participated in the full marathon and Nafis Ahmed and Sharmin Yasin participated in the half marathon.

The whole city of Calgary gets festive with everyone from two-year-olds to the elderly running or walking different distances in this competition. Ultra (50 km), full (42.2 km) and half (21.1 km) marathons are the most popular races in this competition.

This year's marathon was a slightly different experience for expats living in Calgary.

Theater personality Zahid Haque said that this is a different feeling on Canadian soil. Last year I participated in marathon in Toronto, Canada, Bangabandhu Marathon in Dhaka and this same marathon in Calgary. I participated for the fourth time this year. There is no substitute for running a marathon to get used to and motivated by active living.

On the other hand, Nafis Ahmed and Sharmin Yasin think that walking or running is one of the ways to maintain mental and physical health. There is no alternative. Once one realizes the physical and mental relaxation that comes with starting it, one cannot quit.

It should be noted that marathon running is becoming increasingly popular worldwide. Although the condition does not directly cause death, our daily sedentary lifestyles dependent on machines are a major threat to our physical and mental health. There is no alternative to active living to get rid of it.

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