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The Free Press Marathon Weekend begins with its first children’s marathon

The Free Press Marathon Weekend begins with its first children’s marathon

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Twelve-year-old Xzavier Hooks spent a month preparing for his first race, the final mile of a marathon.

That’s right, Xzavier is 12. And the marathon he participated in was the first-ever children’s marathon presented by Priority Health.

Xzavier trained at school, at the Golightly Education Center and in his free time – eventually running and walking 25.2 miles before heading to the Detroit RiverWalk on Saturday to tackle the final mile and complete his marathon.

Xzavier knew he had to keep a steady pace if he wanted to have a chance. At 10:20 a.m. a horn sounded and Xzavier took off along with the other 499 children.

Parents and siblings surrounded the class. Some held signs with the name of their favorite runner. Others had signs that read, “Find Strong.” The sound of cowbells and cheers rang through the air as the children reached the finish line.

As Xzavier came around the corner and completed his second lap to end the race, his mother, Cierra, ran toward the barricade and hugged her son. He finished the event with a time of 7 minutes and 38 seconds.

“I’m thrilled. I’m overjoyed. I’m proud of him,” Cierra Hooks said, noting her son has asthma. “He was able to push through and persevere to the finish line.”

The Kids Marathon took place Saturday morning as part of a weekend of events surrounding the 47th annual Detroit Free Press Marathon presented by MSU Federal Credit Union. The Kids Marathan was open to youngsters between the ages of 6 and 13 years. They had to run and complete their first 25.2 miles before Saturday’s race and finish their final mile of the event.

The 500 participants included 250 students from five Detroit Public School Community District (DPSCD) schools as part of a pilot program sponsored by Priority Health. The initiative offered each student free registration and a pair of shoes. Lessons on incorporating healthy habits into routines and goal setting across the sport of running were also offered.

The race was exciting, and not just for the children.

“To be honest, my heart was pounding a bit. I wanted to get out and run with them,” said Roy Steed, program officer in the DPSCD athletics office. “And I’m not a runner, but I wanted to do it because we all come together.”

Hooks said she wants her son to continue competing in such events and that the long-term goal is for him to compete in the Olympics.

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For Hooks and her son, Steed’s advice for anyone wanting to compete is simple: “Don’t stop, keep going,” he said.

Set a world record?

More than 4,600 registered runners took part in four events on marathon Saturday, a 14% increase from last year, said Susan DiCosmo, volunteer media representative for the Free Press Marathon.

The morning began with the 1-mile race presented by Precision Garage Door with 1,100 participants.

Dani Filipeck, 32, of Sault Ste. Marie was among them, with one goal in mind: to set the Guinness World Record by running the fastest mile with three children while pushing a stroller.

“I got the GoPro footage,” said Filipeck, who completed the mile in 6 minutes, 40 seconds. “The timekeeper will sign the little form and all that fun stuff, but it’s a Guinness World Record attempt and I think I’ve done it as long as I have the right paperwork.”

Filipeck, who gave birth six months ago, also ran the 5K on Saturday morning.

Filipeck is a marathon ambassador and serves as lactation and breastfeeding coordinator for the Sunday events. She and her husband own a running company where she specializes in training women.

“I love coaching moms,” Filipeck said. “You know, maybe they’ve never run before and it’s so fun to start with a 5K to work your way up and they do a half run and a full run and it’s easy so cool. Running is so much fun, you.” can be done anywhere, anytime.

“The best feeling ever”

The smallest runners (and shortest distance) were in the Meijer Little Detroit Dash. All racers were under 8 years old and competed in a quarter-mile race, many accompanied by a parent.

Nithin Gottam, 42, of Bloomfield Township, accompanied his two daughters, Meera, 6, and Laya, 2, in their first race.

Gottam, who has competed in 15 Free Press marathons, wanted to share this moment with his daughters after undergoing reconstructive ankle surgery in July 2021 that essentially left him learning to walk again.

“I didn’t know if I could do it again,” Gottam said. “So it’s my first race since I broke my ankle pretty badly.”

“Best feeling ever,” Gottam said as he shared the experience with his daughters. “I love every minute of it. I’m so happy to see her happy and running.”

“Bowling is a great motivator”

The biggest race of the day was the 5K, with 2,800 runners and walkers taking on the 3.1-mile course.

Elainia Kewley, 57, of Detroit, signed up for her first 5K this year. She said her original plan before the race was to do a lot of walking; That was until her craving for sweets surfaced.

“Bowling is a great motivator,” Kewley said. “It gets your butt moving.”

Kewley’s daughter Diarra, who was scheduled to run her first full marathon on Sunday, also served as motivation. Kewley’s goal was to finish the 5K within an hour.

Supported by her proud family and those Skittles, Kewley finished the race in 46 minutes and 15 seconds.