A day at the races! The Gold Challenge Stadium Event

We had a fantastic time at the Gold Challenge Stadium event on Sunday! It was a brilliant opportunity to have a glimpse inside the Olympic Stadium before the real games start in June. The Stadium is really impressive and there was a great atmosphere all day!

Gold Challenge is a unique event in which participants aim to try as many Olympic and Paralympic sports as they can by the end of 2012, including Archery, Athletics, Kayaking, Fencing, Judo and Table tennis. The Gold Challenge Stadium event was a celebration for those taking part in The Gold Challenge, to reward them for their fantastic fundraising and sporting achievements.

Nine Blind Veterans UK fundraisers were given the chance of a lifetime to run 100m in the Olympic Stadium, before any of the Olympic athletes! Linda, Erik, Ben, Ilona, Richard, Liz, Sandra, Mike and Terianne all put amazing effort into their races. Mike, one of our beneficiaries did brilliantly, coming 3^rd in his race!

Our fantastic runners just before the race

Ilona, our 100k Challenge blogger, has written about her experience of the day:

‘Over 20 years have passed since I last recall running 100m, and the memory of falling headlong is burnt into my psyche. I might have run a marathon, walked 100km and climbed all 3 peaks of Britain since then, but the idea of undertaking an event which left me feeling humiliated in front of all my classmates fills me with horror.

As ever with these things, the dread far outweighs the reality. I’m overwhelmed when I arrive at the park just to be inside it and spend a while just walking round, checking out the runners already competing and soaking up a carnival atmosphere. The weather for April is undoubtedly a huge and unexpected bonus. The camaraderie amongst my fellow Blind Veteran runners means that the hour before we hit the track passes before I know it and we all head to the track with huge smiles on our faces, ready to face it head on. Other runners are facing up to their own personal challenges but all mine consists of is ‘do not fall over!’

I don’t. My thigh muscles burn and my heart pumps like mad but I make it across the line without any mishaps. Then the endorphin rush kicks in and before I know it I am sat on the DLR, medal in hand, grinning like a loon having conquered yet another fear. ‘

Here is Ilona with Erik and Linda, who are hoping to raise £10,000 per Kilometre of the 100k Challenge!

Find out more about the 100k on their website:www.walk100km.com/

Several of the Blind Veterans UK staff were lucky enough to be in the parade. We were all awarded a Gold Challenge medal each and got to meet a few celebrities!