My second marathon, my first big-city marathon, was Berlin 1999. I had of course been there the previous year as a spectator, and now I wanted to run. My experience of the race in China meant that I had a great urge to find out what it would be like to run a “perfectly ordinary” marathon. We agreed to go together as a family as we had done in 1998, but the difference was that I was to run, and Hanne would spend time together with the children while I was doing so.
There was a huge difference between the two trips to the German capital. At the same time, though, the two trips resembled each other but with reversed roles. This time, too, only one of the parents ran, but it was me and not Hanne. Our state of mind was also different this year, which was not so surprising, considering the fact that a divorce was threatening on the horizon. But we stayed at the same hotel as the year before; the Hotel Estrel Berlin – which was just as satisfactory as in 1998, and the trip took place at the same time of year. We left home on Friday afternoon and reached Berlin in time to eat supper at an Italian restaurant.
On the Saturday morning, we drove out to a large exhibition hall where I was to pick up my start number. As with so many other major marathons it was possible in the hall to buy all things imaginably related to the sport and we gave ourselves plenty of time to see them all. I bought a nice tie with runners on which I have worn on many festive occasions. But when we returned to the car, I got a rather nasty surprise. I had not noticed a handicap-only parking sign, and now the police were about to give us, and several other car owners, tickets. We wasted no time getting into the car in the hope of being able to slink off unnoticed, but that didn’t work. Just as I thought we were getting away with it, we were stopped by an officer and given our ticket. The fine also had to be paid on the spot – and in cash. I had no D-Marks on me, so I had to go back to the exhibition hall and take out some cash from an ATM. I was pretty annoyed actually, a fact I made no attempt to conceal from the policeman. But the walk to the ATM and back freshened me up a bit so I could see the humour of the situation. So it was with a big smile and a witty remark that I paid the well-deserved fine. The rest of the day was spent with sightseeing and some good food in the evening.
In the midst of a difficult period (because of my relationship with Hanne) I still remember the weekend in Berlin as a nice time. I was in an exceptionally good mood the whole weekend, and the run itself was also a good experience.
The marathon was held on 26th September, precisely four months after my 42.195 kilometre debut. After breakfast, we went to the start which was teeming with people. That year, 27,112 people completed the run, but this number has since grown to over 40,000. That makes it Europe’s largest marathon and one of the biggest in the world. Because approximately one in eight of the runners is Danish, it is also referred to as Denmark’s next biggest marathon only outdone by the Copenhagen Marathon.
The first Berlin Marathon was run on 13th October 1974 which means that it is rich in tradition. That first year only 286 people ran, in other words fewer than in the first Great Wall Marathon. Organised by the local running club SC Charlottenburg, the route has no inclines or bottlenecks, making it one of the world’s fastest runs at the distance. Many world records have been made here. The course begins and ends at the heart of the city, passing through numerous colourful Berlin quarters and a good number of familiar sights.
My body trembled, and I felt great pleasure as I stood there at the start. I was conscious of the fact that I wouldn’t be among the fastest runners and started well behind the front. But it was overwhelming to stand there ready for the start among so many runners having only previously run with about 1% of this number. So it was a great moment when the gun went off, and I could wave goodbye to my boys.
I will never forget what a fantastic experience it was running among so many others in front of such a large crowd. I have heard that one million spectators attend the Berlin Marathon. If one in eight spectators is also Danish, then there would have been more than 100,000 of my countrymen on the sidelines. I was also running in red and white, the colours of the Danish flag, which was an obligation in itself. When, once in a while, I had to stop running and walk it was not long before I saw someone standing there waving our glorious flag or heard someone shouting. The support of the many Danish spectators was quite unique. It was like running at home. Many encouraging remarks were made by spectators of other nationalities, though. I have actually experienced that marathon onlookers the world over are very social people who show their appreciation towards everyone. I almost felt as though I were being carried forward. All along the route there were bands playing live music or music from giant loudspeaker stacks. There were also other kinds of entertainment. At one point Eddy Grant’s “Gimme Hope Joanna” was blasting out of large loudspeakers while further along there was a jazz band and then a reggae band playing on oil drums. It really was a terrific experience.
On the whole, the day was full of positive experiences, though there was the odd fly in the ointment. When I stopped for the first time to get something to drink I was almost knocked over by an aggressive runner who honestly believed that his own personal race was more important than everybody else’s health. So I learned to watch out at subsequent stops.
The weather was generally good although there were a few showers, but then again they were rather refreshing.
My desire to beat my own personal record by running in Berlin was fulfilled. With a time of 3:52:11, I was more than two hours faster than in China. Not many people manage to chop so much off their personal record. I have never beaten my time on that day and I dare say I never will.
It was also a big day because my son Steffen ran his first organised run. He ran a mini marathon of 4.2195 kilometres – in other words a tenth of the marathon.
The next day we drove home. I had now seriously developed a taste for the sport for which I had previously no understanding whatsoever.
I had become a marathon runner.
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