photo: Joshua at the Panathenaic Stadium

Joshua Jenkins, from Georgia, USA, came to Greece  for the  “European Master in Sport and Exercise Psychology” (EMSEP) at the Department of Sport Sciences of the University of Thessaly. He is now at his first year of his studies, and given his passion for running he could not miss the Authentic Marathon of Athens! 
Joshua, describes his experience as “amazing!”.

Last year it was Jón Gregersen, from Faroe Islands who run the Marathon and this year Joshua Jenkins  among other undergraduate students of the Department!

We asked Joshua  to tell us a few words for his experience in the Authentic Marathon. Among other things Joshua said:

"My experience was amazing. 
There were over 50,000 people there! 
The crowd and everyone was cheering the runners on 
and really encouraging. 
The race itself was really tough."

"The first half marathon was a breeze and pretty flat. From 25 kilometers to 35 kilometers was the hardest part of the run because it was all uphill. My goal was to finish under 3 hours in the marathon, but because I didn't save energy, I died in the last part of the marathon. I had to walk many times and barely ran to the finish line! But even though I didn't accomplish my goal of 3 hrs, I was able to finish my first marathon in 3:15.40. The people that worked the race was so nice and very hospitable. I can say that I am now better prepared for the marathon next time and would definitely start slower! I would recommend the race to other people who would like to accomplish a marathon!  I recommend others to try it because even though the race is difficult, it's very rewarding at the end!"

Thank you Joshua  for sharing your experiences and hope to see you again in the next marathon!

And as we always say...."Always proud of our students"!