Marathon Pundit: T-shirts of the 2008 Chicago Marathon: Part One

Monday, October 20, 2008

T-shirts of the 2008 Chicago Marathon: Part One

Last Sunday I ran my 19th consecutive Chicago Marathon. As I did last year, I'm going to take a short break from politics and show some of the T-shirts I ran behind eight days ago. Some of the photographs are less than perfect, but I want you to cut me some slack, I was running while I snapped them.

The runner on the left is running not only for his late grandparents, but the victims--I presume from the 9/11 tragedy--from the New York City police and fire departments.

Over on the right is a man also running in the memory of others. He's a charity runner with the American Cancer Society, the names on the tags are those of cancer victims.

The man in the yellow shirt is a member of Team 413, which gets its moniker from the Bible, specifically Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." That's what is emblazoned on his shirt. More from Team 413's site:

TEAM 413 was founded because we believe that while on earth Jesus Christ had the heart of an athlete. His heart defined courage, endurance, power, perseverance, strength, loyalty, motivation, dedication, compassion, and truth. We believe that He gives us, as runners, the courage to start, the perseverance to continue the race, and the strength and power to finish strong.

That's a tough act to follow. The woman on the right caught my eye not because of the shirt she's wearing, but the cape. It's the same type of cape Wonder Woman wears.

Kenyans dominate the marathon sport. As is usually the case, a Kenyan won the men's division of the Chicago Marathon last week. The man in the white shirt is optimistic about his chances of making the 2012 Olympic team from Kenya.