40th Anniversary celebration of Sri Chinmoy's first marathon
By Tejvan Pettingerauthor bio »
5 March, 2019
About the author:
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
On 3rd March 1979, Sri Chinmoy ran his first marathon, in Chico, California, completing the distance in a time of 4:31:34. In the next four years Sri Chinmoy would run 21 more marathons, but perhaps more significantly, he would inspire many runners to follow the philosophy of self-transcendence and take up long-distance running. 40 years after his first marathon, the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team continue to promote marathons and ultra distance races across the globe.
In honour of this significant milestone in the history of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team, groups of runners from around the world held running events, including 70 members who travelled to Chico, California. Marathon. Events were also held in many different places around the world, including in Bristol (UK), Melbourne (Australia), Dublin (Ireland), Augsburg (Germany), Sao Paolo (Brazil), New York (US), and Zlin (Czech Republic). The weather varied from 37 degrees heatwave in Australia to a below freezing snow-storm in New York.
Race Reports from around the globe
Vasudha, our Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team co-ordinator in San Diego, writes: "Some 60 members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team from the US, Canada, Great Britain, and even Mongolia met in Chico, California to celebrate a significant milestone in the history of our team. On March 3, 1979, Sri Chinmoy ran his first marathon in Chico, California. To commemorate the 40th anniversary of this signal event - which in turn helped to launch the worldwide organisation that today sponsors hundreds of footraces, duathlons, triathlons, swimming events, and more - team members ran along the same course in beautiful Bidwell Park. The race that was then a full marathon - the Bidwell Classic - now features a half marathon and a 5K. In addition to participating in both these distances - and nabbing 13 age-group awards - Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team members hosted an aid station and cheered all the race participants who braved the cold, rainy weather. After finishing the half marathon, seven athletes covered an additional 13.1 miles to complete the marathon distance and to honour Sri Chinmoy's inaugural marathon."
In Australia the weekend co-incided with the arrival of the runners from the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run, who were finishing the Australian leg of a 44-country journey that will carry the Peace Torch all nations in the Southern Hemisphere - the first time that the torch has gone all the way around the world as part of one run. As a result there were over 55 Australian and international runners - who fortunately were well-acclimatised for the heat, which hovered in the high 30s towards the end of the race.
In New York, the weather veered to the other extreme - due to the cold and freezing snow on the track, the official race was cancelled. However, some intrepid runners wished to run their own personal marathon. With no official aid station, five runners - four women and one man, completed the distance, with many other runners completing several laps to take part in the spirit of the event, despite the outer challenges. Brazilian members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team marked the event by running a 13 hours race in Ibirapuera Park, São Paulo from 8 am to 9 pm - 6 men and 4 women ran a total of 671km.
In Dublin, runners also faced freezing temperatures with rain, biting wind and temperatures hovering above freezing. Despite these challenging conditions, six members of the Irish Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team remained undaunted by the weather and successfully completed the marathon distance.
Sri Chinmoy felt that running marathons was an excellent complement to the 'inner running' - the spiritual life.
Spiritual people often like running because it reminds them of their inner journey. The outer running reminds them that a higher, deeper, more illumining and more fulfilling goal is ahead of them in the inner world, and for that reason running gives them real joy.
Long-distance running gives us a real feeling of accomplishment. We can run 100 metres forty times during the year and not feel the same sense of accomplishment as when we run one marathon. But speed and endurance are both important, especially in the spiritual life. If one has only speed, then one cannot ultimately succeed; we need endurance because the goal is quite far. Again, if one has only stamina and no speed, then it will take forever to reach the goal. Only if someone has both qualities will he be able to make very good progress in his spiritual life and achieve something really great in life.
Sri Chinmoy's Marathon Runs
March 3, 1979 - Bidwell Classic - Chico, CA - 4:31:34
March 25, 1979 - Heart-Watchers Marathon - Toledo,OH - 3:55:07
May 6, 1979 - Newsday-Long Island Marathon - Long Island, NY - 4:16:23
May 12, 1979 - Champlain Valley Mar. - Plattsburgh, NY - 4:41:16
Our 2019 ultra race calendar for Europe and the USA now released!
By Nirbhasa Mageeauthor bio »
15 November, 2018
About the author:
Nirbhasa is originally from Ireland but currently lives in Reykjavik, Iceland. He is an enthusiastic multi-day runner, having twice completed both the Ten Day Race and the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race - the longest race in the world.
For those of you planning to tackle races of longer than marathon distance next year, the German Sri Chinmoy Marathon team has published a helpful race calendar of the ultra races organised by the Sri Chinmoy Marathon this year. In Europe, the races include the national 24 hour championships of Moldova and the Ukraine, and the calendar also features our two flagship events in the USA: the 6 and 10 day races in April, and the 3100 Mile Race in August - the world's longest certified road race.
(Picture: Our 24, 12 and 6 hour race that takes place in Belgrade, Serbia in September)
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Start of 2018 Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race
By Tejvan Pettingerauthor bio »
18 June, 2018
About the author:
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
On 17 June 2018, ten intrepid runners took to the start line of the world's longest certified road race - the 22nd edition of the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race. Over the next seven weeks, the runners will aim to complete a daily average of 60 miles or more in order to finish the race within the official time limit of 52 days. The runners have to contend with the hot New York summer, a hard concrete course and the many physical and mental challenges of competing in this epic of self-transcendence.
The race was founded by spiritual teacher and ultra-runner pioneer Sri Chinmoy, who saw distance running as a vehicle to enable runners to bring to the fore their physical, mental and spiritual capacities to complete this unique challenge.
“We have to believe in a higher Power.
Only by believing in a higher Power
Can we go beyond and beyond
Our limited, human capacity.”
In this year's race, we have the 2017 winner, Vasu Duzhiy from Russia. Also returning to the race is Kaneenika Janakova, from Slovakia who last year broke the women's world record, setting a time of 48 days+14:24:10. Proving that age is no barrier to ultra distance, the race also welcomes William Sichel (64) from Orkney, Scotland, UK. Sichel holds a host of Scottish and UK distance records and completed the race in 2014. Yolanda Holder, 60 years old and the only person to have racewalked the distance, also returns to the race after completing last year at her first attempt in a time of 51days+17:00:13. Surasa Mairer, former 3100 Mile women's record holder and current female world record holder for 1000 km, 700 miles, and 1300 miles is also starting.
This unique race has developed a following from all around the world. You can follow the race by viewing two race cams, daily results, daily blogs and photos.
Six-day race champion Petra Kasperova featured in new book
By Tejvan Pettingerauthor bio »
16 June, 2018
About the author:
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
Petra Kasperova from the Czech Republic, the winner of our Sri Chinmoy Six Day Race which took place this year in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in New York, was recently featured in a new inspirational book called Superhuman, by Rowan Hooper. The book looks at people who have achieved notable features of self-transcendence, and tries to answer what motivates them to reach for these goals. Petra finished this year's race with a total of 370 miles, at only her second attempt at running a multi-day event.
During the 6 day race, the runners can be out on the course for many hours at a time, and have to deal with numerous physical issues. Petra credits meditation with giving her the inner strength to overcome these obstacles.
I am certain I would never do so well in running if it wasn't for meditation and spiritual techniques that I have learned and applied during training and racing. The techniques can change from race to race and even during a race. I like to repeat mantras, qualities and prayers - that seems to help keeping my mind calm and focused. I try not to think at all, just to be focused. Repeating qualities like gratitude seem to keep my mind clear and make me more aware of what is going on inside of me and also outside of me.
Running is an integral part of Petra's life - she works in the specialist running shop Run and Become in London, where she advises runners on all manner of running issues. She often trains by running to work and back.
"I find that running has made me stronger, not just physically but on many different levels. It is always when we go outside our comfort zones, outside what we think is possible, when we transcend ourselves in any field of life (not just running), that's the time where we need to dig deep, and when we do, we get glimpses of who we truly are and who we really want to be – for a happy self and a happy world."
The winners of the 2018 Sri Chinmoy 6 and 10 Day Races: (l-r) Asprihanal Aalto, John Geesler, Ilvaka Nemcova and Petra
Sri Chinmoy Multisport Classic in Jindabyne [video]
By Tejvan Pettingerauthor bio »
14 March, 2018
About the author:
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
The Sri Chinmoy Multisport Classic, held in Jindabyne, is a unique multi-sport event held in the beautiful surroundings of Australia's Snowy Mountains. The annual event has been held for several years and combines water and land-based sports over 12 different legs.
The event attracts a diverse range of athletes who can compete either individually or part of a relay. This video, produced by Sarankhuu Jargal, shows highlights from the different sections including running, swimming, mountain biking and paddling. Steve Hanley a former winner also gives his brief thoughts on why he enjoys the race.
The course is varied, with 3 mountain bike legs ranging from easy to highly technical; 3 running courses from flat to very not-flat; 3 swims of between 1.2 and 2.5 kms; and 3 paddles of 5.5 to 9.5 kms. The swims and paddles criss-cross most of Lake Jindabyne, while the mountain bikers and runners thoroughly explore the rugged Eastern Escarpment, rolling farmland of the Western Shore, and bushland of the adjoining Kosciuszko National Park.
The event is organised by the Canberra/Australia Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team.
Rupantar has been the race director of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team since 1985, having been asked by Sri Chinmoy to serve in that capacity. As well as working on the big races the US Marathon Team organise each year - the 3100 Mile Race and the Six and 10 Day Race - he also spends a considerable amount of time archiving the Marathon Team's 40 year history on this website.
Nataliya Samunnati Lehonkova, a member of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team who competed for her native Ukraine in last year's Olympics in Rio, won the woman's elite field in the Dublin SSE Airtricity Marathon. On a rainy windy day, she finished in a personal best time of 2:28:57.
Picture below: Samunnati with friends from the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in Dublin after the awards ceremony. Samunnati has won the Dublin Marathon before, as well as winning the Edinburgh, Tolouse and Los Angeles Marathon
Photo top: Nataliya Lehonkova in 2015 Dublin Marathon. Photo William Murphy CC SA
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New women's world record in 3100 Mile Race
By Tejvan Pettingerauthor bio »
6 August, 2017
About the author:
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
48 days and 14 hours after starting the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race, Kaneenika Janakova,47, of Bratislava, Slovakia set a new women’s world record for the distance. Her final time was 48 days+14:24:10, averaging over 63 miles for nearly two months of daily racing.
Kaneenika broke the previous women’s record set by Surasa Mairer by over 17 hours. Her performance was also sufficient to finish 2nd overall.
After a difficult opening few days, Kaneenika was a model of consistency averaging well over the required minimum daily distance of 60 miles. She remarked how over the course of the race she felt stronger - despite the accumulation of miles and physical fatigue.
“At the beginning of the race I actually didn’t feel so strong, the first week and maybe even 10 days. But then all of a sudden it felt as though I was gaining the strength. It just all started happening. It was all coming from inside.” - Kaneenika
Vasu Duzihy overall winner
The overall winner of the race was Vasu Duzhiy 51, of St Petersburg, Russia, who won the 21st Annual Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race for the second time in 46 days+17:38:22. It was Vasu’s sixth consecutive finish and his second consecutive first place. His performance was all the more remarkable for a serious back accident eight months ago, which left him unable to train and barely able to stand. Speaking after the race, Vasu expressed his joy of competing in the contest.
“I love this race. I don’t know why I love it. I just love it and do it. I am happy here and I am able to do self transcendence. I hope that I can inspire some people to be better citizens of the world. They inspire me and I inspire them.” - Vasu
Over 100 spectators came to see the finish of the runners who had braved extremes of temperature, sickness, and the unremitting nature of the concrete block which had been their home and sporting pilgrimage for the past several weeks.
3rd place for Nirbhasa Magee
On Saturday night, Nirbhasa Magee, a native of Dublin, Ireland finished second man, third overall in a personal best time of 48 days+16:47:01. It was Nirbhasa’s second attempt at the distance, managing to improve his finish time by two days plus 19 hours faster than his previous effort in 2015. For Magee, the spirit of self-transcendence is the essence of the race, remarking:
“It is nice to transcend yourself… I am not leaving anything on the table. It is not like I am taking it easy. What you see from me every day is my absolute best that I can put out." - Nirbhasa
The race continues for a few days with Harita Davies (NZ) and Yolanda Holder (US) within striking distance of finishing the race within the allotted time of 52 days.
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
This year sees the 21st edition of the Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race. 10 runners took to the start line on June 18th to embark on the epic quest to complete 3,100 miles over the course of 52 days. Each runner will need to tap into deep reserves of - stamina, fitness, and inner strength - to meet the 60 mile a day average needed to complete the race. The race was founded by Sri Chinmoy, a spiritual teacher keen to promote physical self-transcendence as a way to the inner and outer enlightenment.
The race attracts international media attention for the unique personal challenge it presents. The race promoted by the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team has an international flavour with runners drawn from Europe, US and New Zealand. In addition to the ten runners a team of volunteers look after the runners through cooking, medical team and lap counters.
“Go beyond, farther beyond!
Do not limit yourself
By comparing yourself with others
Or even with your own self.”
– Sri Chinmoy
Sri Chinmoy, Twenty-Seven Thousand Aspiration-Plants, Part 99, Agni Press, 1984
Vasu Duzhiy Age 51, St. Petersburg, Russia (5 finishes, 1 win)
Smarana Puntigam 46, Vienna Austria. Seven straight finishes.
Nidhruvi Zimmermann, 51, Vienna, Austria
Nirbhasa Magee, 37, Dublin Ireland
Andrey Andreev, 51, St Petersburg Russia
Sergey Kuzmin, 44, Nizhniy Novgorod Russia
Kaneenika Janakova, Age 47, Bratislava, Slovakia
Ananda-Lahari Zuskin, Age 42, Kosice, Slovakia
Yolanda Holder, 59, Corona,CA USA
Harita Davies, 42, Christchurch New Zealand
Despite injury and cold, Tejvan Pettinger entered the National hill climb championship held on Bank Road, Matlock this Sunday. The former national champion (2013) finished in 41st place in a time of 2.40 - 22 seconds behind the winner Adam Kenway. Speaking after the event, Tejvan explained his decision to ride despite being off form.
Photo: Andrew Wood
"With persistent injury, lack of training and then chesty cough, it was tempting to miss the event and stay at home, but the National Championship always has a good atmosphere and I wanted to be able to take part - even if I knew I wouldn't do particularly well. All things considered, I was happy with time of 2.40. It was a hard effort. But, the main thing this year was just taking part and being part of the event. Also, I've done every event since 2005, and I didn't want to miss this year. The hill climb championship is a very high standard this year."
Yuri Trostenyuk wins Sri Chinmoy Self Transcendence 3100 Mile Race
By Tejvan Pettingerauthor bio »
5 August, 2016
About the author:
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
Yuri Trostenyuk, a plumber from Vinnitsa Ukraine, won the 2016 edition of the 3100 Mile Race after a closely fought contest with current record holder Asprihanal Aalto (Finland).
In an epic race, Yuri finished in a time of 46 days +01:10:25 - averaging 67 miles / 108.346 km per day. It was the closest ever finish to the 3100 Mile Race, with Yuri holding off a late surge from last years winner Ashprihanal. In 2015, Mr Aalto set the current all-time record for 3100 miles in a blistering speed of 40 days +09 hours. However, perhaps suffering from the effects of last years effort, Asprihanal struggled in the early parts of this years race, but the flying Finn finished in a flurry, covering an average of 78.61 miles over the final four days to push Yuri all the way to the finish. It marked a fitting end to the race, where runners battled through injuries, a heatwave, and the gruelling nature of the course.
On the last full day, Yuri ran 79 miles and Ashprihanal 86 miles - as Yuri crossed the finish line, only eight miles separated the two runners.
This year's race was the closest margin of victory ever. Graphic: Matthias Van Baaren
Yuri has now finished the 3100 Mile Race four times. He is also a four-time winner of the 10 Day Race.
Asprihanal's completion today took 46 days + 02:54:22, which is an average of 67.218 miles per day (108.177 km). Asprihanal holds the record for - course record, the most victories, and most completions while averaging 70 plus miles per day.
Other runners Atmavir Petr Spacil and Vasu Duzhiy are also close behind and set to finish very soon. In the womens race Kaneenika Janakova and Surasa Mairer are also edging closer to the magic 3100 mile mark.
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Dipali Cunningham: a Champion's Champion from 1991 - 2015
By Rupantar LaRussoauthor bio »
21 March, 2016
About the author:
Rupantar has been the race director of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team since 1985, having been asked by Sri Chinmoy to serve in that capacity. As well as working on the big races the US Marathon Team organise each year - the 3100 Mile Race and the Six and 10 Day Race - he also spends a considerable amount of time archiving the Marathon Team's 40 year history on this website.
The New York Times recently published an article touting a runner "as one of the country’s top female ultramarathoners". Kudos to the runner highlighted. However, the Times writer, while defining ultrarunning as any distance beyond the marathon (which I have no qualms with), failed to examine distances beyond the many races that were highlighted in the article. Ultrarunning beyond the 50 mile and 100 mile trail races has a long and storied history dating back to at least the pedestrian races in the 19th century. See Harper's Magazine article by Sam Shaw "Run Like Fire Once More" for a bigger history of multi day racing.
If multiday races were included, then surely Dipali Cunningham would be up there as one of the all-time greats. Here is a brief resume from a career spanning from 1991 to 2015:
36 multiday races
30 first place finishes
12 times overall wins (i.e beating all the men in the race!)
3 world records (6 day race) :
1998 504 miles
2001 510 miles
2009 (best) over 50 years old 513 miles
2014 American US age group record 55-59 475 miles
3rd place in world for 700 miles (women)
4th place in world 1,000 miles (women)
33 Australian National records (24 hours to 1,000 miles)
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Sri Chinmoy at Mens Running Magazine
By Tejvan Pettingerauthor bio »
17 January, 2016
About the author:
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
"Meet the spiritual leader, peace ambassador, runner and
weightlifter who encouraged an entire generation to seek
fulfilment through long-distance running"
On Sunday November 15th the Impossibility Challenger record festival took place in Berlin, Germany.
The event was founded by Sri Chinmoy in 1982, Impossibility Challenger invites people from all over the world to challenge themselves by setting records in various disciplines, from strength to speed to humour. 14 record breakers from 9 different countries came to Berlin to perform a total of 23 records. Among them were the fastest mile running while wearing swim-fins, the most jokes told in one hour, going up and down a set of stairs carrying 20 eggs on spoons and lifting a 130 kg weight with the teeth.
Karteek Clark from the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in Scotland told 587 jokes by heart in one hour.
Rainer Schröder from Germany lifted two people with a total weight of 130 kg with his teeth.
Radek Rosa from the Czech Republic pulled a bus full of people weighing 13,257 kg a distance of 20 meters.
Samalya Schäfer from the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in Berlin completed 1 mile in 5 minutes and 33 seconds wearing swim-fins.
Tejvan organises short-distance running and cycling races for the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in his home city of Oxford. He is also a very good cyclist, having won the National hill climb championships in 2013 and finished 3rd in the National 100 Mile Time Trials in 2014.
After 33 years at Palmer Street, the successful running shop Run and Become has moved to a new location in the heart of Victoria, London. To celebrate the move to Ecclestone Street, many customers, suppliers and long-time supporters were invited to an evening function to mark the occasion. In addition, Ashrita Furman, the world’s most prolific Guinness World Record holder record, came over from New York to attempt a new Guinness World Record.
Run and Become was founded in 1982, by Ongkar and Vinodini Smith - after their spiritual Teacher Sri Chinmoy suggested they open an enterprise for sporting goods. 1982 was one year after the first London marathon and, in those years, running was very much a minority sport - with no specialist running shop retailers. Over the past 33 years, Run and Become has played an important role in the London and British running community - serving runners with independent service and advice.
Run and Become, also have branches in Edinburgh and Cardiff.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the current manager, Shankara Smith spoke about the aims of Run and Become, and how it is inspired by the philosophy of Sri Chinmoy. Sri Chinmoy himself was a keen runner, completing many marathons and ultra-marathons during his running career. Sri Chinmoy also taught how meditation and the philosophy of self-transcendence could play a beneficial role in helping the outer running. Throughout the store, there are several photos of Sri Chinmoy, including photos of meeting great running heroes, such as Jesse Owens and Carl Lewis.
Don Ritche, Sri Chinmoy, and founder Ongkar Tony Smith from 1982.
The new store
The new store is set on Ecclestone Street, just off Buckingham Palace road - and a few minutes from Victoria train station. A team of talented architects from Czech Sri Chinmoy Centres have helped create a beautiful, light and spacious environment to display the running shoes and clothes.
Within the store, there is also a mini running track - ideal for testing out spikes and running shoes. All shop assistants have been carefully trained to help customers find the best running shoes for their needs. In the downstairs floor, the store will also hold related workshops and personal physiotherapy services for runners seeking to prevent and deal with injuries.
Guinness World Record Attempt
Ashrita Furman sets new Guinness record for flipping egss in a glass, using only breath!
Ashrita Furman sought to break the Guinness World Record for blowing over the most number of eggs in a cup, in a minute. Ashrita was on great form, blowing over 61 eggs within a minute. (the record is yet to be confirmed by Guinness)
After Ashrita’s successful record attempt, those spectating had a go for themselves - learning that it was much more difficult than it looked. Some, including the author of this article, took a good few minutes before successfully flipping over one egg.
Petra Kasperova from the Czech Republic, the winner of our Sri Chinmoy Six Day Race which took place this year in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in New York, was recently featured in a new inspirational book called 
The race continues for a few days with Harita Davies (NZ) and Yolanda Holder (US) within striking distance of finishing the race within the allotted time of 52 days.
