Chicago Marathon 2023

“Conquer a Marathon to Challenge the Limits You Set on Yourself!”

On October 8th, 2023, four runners from our NUSTIAN USA community embarked on an extraordinary journey, taking on the illustrious Chicago Marathon. In the company of over 47,000 dedicated runners, they proved that the only boundaries that truly exist are the ones we impose on ourselves. The Chicago Marathon, one of the esteemed six World Marathon Majors, alongside Boston, NYC, London, Berlin, and Tokyo, served as their arena for this awe-inspiring feat.

Salman Ilyas led this team, the fastest NUSTIAN alive, who blazed across the finish line in a remarkable 3 hours and 20 minutes. An alumnus of EME College, Class of 2007, Salman now thrives as an Associate at Arup in Seattle. This wasn’t just another marathon for Salman; it marked his 14th and second World Marathon Major, solidifying his status as a seasoned and relentless runner.

Salman was followed by Azeem Sarwar, the current president of NUSTIAN USA, who finished in 3 hours and 38 minutes. Azeem’s decision to tackle the Chicago Marathon was driven by persuasion from his long-time friend and class fellow from NUST, Rafay Zahid. Rafay, who jetted in from Houston, finished in 3 hours and 46 minutes. Both Azeem and Rafay are graduates of EME College, class of 2000. Azeem now leads a research group at General Motors in Detroit, while Rafay applies his expertise as a petrophysicist with British Petroleum in Houston.

Taha Jamshed, the youngest of this intrepid crew, embarked on his maiden marathon journey, culminating in a commendable finish time of 4 hours and 19 minutes. Hailing from the heart of Chicago, Taha is currently employed by Amazon as a Pathway Operations Manager and is a 2017 graduate from SMME.

While Taha is exploring options for the next adventure, Salman, Azeem, and Rafay are eying the Berlin Marathon in 2024.