Turin is running all the way to New York. On 29 October twelve Base Running runners leave for the United States: on Sunday 1 November they will race the New York City Marathon, one of the most iconic events on the international running calendar. They won’t be the only runners from Turin on the start line, of course, but their trip tells a story that has tied the city to running for years: the story of a team that chose to turn an individual sport into an experience to share.
Twelve runners, one team
Leading the group is Gian Piero Mazzarella, 71, running his third New York City Marathon. Alongside him are Paola Palmero, Salvatore Calcina, Rossella Ceglia, Andrea Stella, Fabio Grasso, Ruggero Carlo Gorgoglione, Luca Cassano, Andrea Rayneri, Antonio Strati, Francesca Astegiano and Pierre Strati Pelgrims. Twelve runners, one team and a shared wish to live an experience that goes far beyond the 42.195 km of the race.
For everyone in the group, the marathon starts long before the start line: in the training sessions they share, in the encouragement of whoever is running beside them, in the preparation they tackle together. And in knowing that every personal goal can become a team achievement. Once again the Base Running shirts will run through the streets of the Big Apple, carrying a piece of Turin with them.
Twenty years of New York
“Base Running runners have been going to the New York City Marathon in this spirit for twenty years now: the spirit of the group, of sharing, of wanting to live an extraordinary experience together,” says Alessandro Giannone, President of Base Running. “Base Running shirts run in marathons all over the world, and I’m happy to see a piece of Turin travelling the world. For us, this is what running is about too: building bonds, sharing emotions and feeling part of a community, wherever our passion for running takes us.”
The Base Running story
Base Running was founded in 2007 with exactly this idea: making running a chance to meet, bringing together people of different ages, fitness levels and experience. Almost twenty years later it is the largest running club in Piedmont and one of the largest in Italy, with more than 500 registered athletes and a community that has involved tens of thousands of running fans over the years.
From the first training sessions to the big international marathons, the common thread hasn’t changed: running together, supporting each other, sharing the effort and the satisfaction of every finish line. The same spirit drives the club’s work as a race organiser: since 2009 it has promoted more than 70 races, involving over 160,000 runners, and has raised and donated more than €210,000 for charity projects in the local area.
Much more than a race
On 1 November the twelve runners will have 42.195 km ahead of them and an extraordinary city to cross. Whatever each of them achieves, the finish line will also have a shared meaning: carrying the colours, the energy and the spirit of a community that chose long ago to run with its heart.
