Conquering Hills and Boundaries: My Unforgettable Journey at the Kigali Peace Marathon
Greetings, people of the internet; last Sunday, June 9th, I participated in the 19th edition of the Kigali Peace Marathon. Let me tell you, this was the most exhilarating marathon I have ever completed. Was it gruelling? Absolutely, but I felt incredibly prepared. I had set my goal to finish the 21km race in under 2 hours and succeeded. I finished in 1 hour and 54 minutes with an average pace of 5:23 per kilometre. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I stopped my Garmin at the end of the race.
I decided to participate in the marathon at the eleventh hour when I found a group of friends who also planned to attend. I quickly signed up and continued training diligently every day. On the big day, I was the first to arrive at the pickup point because I was so excited about the journey.
The trip is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a 23-hour journey from Nairobi to Kigali with stopovers at Nakuru, the Busia border, Kampala, Mbarara, and the Katuna border. After this experience, I’m seriously considering flying next time since it’s much faster. My documents were not in order: I left my National ID at home, and my Yellow Fever Card had an issue, but I still managed to pass through all the checkpoints with surprising ease. How I managed this, I’m still astonished. I stood firm and confidently said my documents got lost during travel, which was a better explanation than admitting I had forgotten them.
When we arrived in Kigali, I called my cousin Anthony, with whom I would stay for a few days. Before that, I met a Kenyan businessman who spoke my local dialect and Kinyarwanda, and I was thrilled to converse with him. He showed me a place to eat local food, but I didn’t enjoy it. Kigali can be bewildering with the Boda Boda numbers, but the positive aspect is that they are organized, and the riders are respectful. You’ll quickly notice the cleanliness in the land of a thousand hills, which is second nature to the residents. There is a national day on which everyone participates in cleaning the city. I wish we had such an initiative back home.
On the second day, Saturday, we collected our marathon bibs, and the sight of the BK Arena was like no other I’ve seen in Kenya. It’s impeccably maintained, and the government plans to build three more stadiums. Afterwards, we went for lunch and visited the renowned Genocide Memorial Park. Here, we witnessed the harrowing history of the genocide, which claimed 1 million lives in 100 days. Women and children were the most affected, and 400,000 orphans were left in the aftermath. Survivors visit the memorial to honour their family members who were innocently killed.
In the afternoon, I explored the larger town, including Kigali City Walk, where an education expo was happening. I also visited the Norrsken House in Kigali, a co-working space that is Africa's largest hub for entrepreneurship. I visited the SAND offices, which are part of ALX, and the hub was strikingly similar to the one in Nairobi.
In the evening, after a hearty dinner, I got lost while heading home. The bike rider lost track of my cousin, who was ahead. I was lost for 45 minutes, trying to get internet access to communicate with my cousin. The biggest challenge was the language barrier, but I eventually found my way home.
On marathon day, I only drank black coffee in the morning and felt ready to achieve a personal record. The marathon started at 7:00 AM Kigali time, and off we went! I could feel my body was primed for the hilly terrain, and I was exhilarated. I also had new shoes and energy gels that I knew would be beneficial. At the 16th kilometre, I decided to walk briefly to catch my breath because those hills are formidable. Despite walking a short distance, I still managed to set a personal record of 1 hour and 54 minutes with a pace of 5:23. For my next marathon, I aim to finish in 1 hour and 40 minutes because why not?
After the marathon, we had lunch at a local café, and since I was returning home the same day, I returned to the house and freshened up. At the bus terminal, I realized I had lost my bus ticket. I explained my situation and was given a new one without paying again. Things were certainly in my favour. We left Kigali on Sunday, June 9th, and arrived in Nairobi on the 10th at 5:00 PM.
In summary, it was a phenomenal experience, and I will continue challenging myself to participate in marathons outside my country.
About the Author
Hey, I am Eric Karani, a Tech enthusiast from Kenya. When not tinkering with things on the Cloud, I write my thoughts on productivity, minimalism and career navigation here. 👈 Click that link to sign up for free :)
