Shariff Abdullah, 48, is a marathon running enthusiast, but there’s a slight twist. Born without the left foot, he earned the title of Singapore’s first ‘Blade Runner’. He runs with a prosthetic blade, similar to that used by South African double-amputee runner Oscar Pistorius. He has participated in over 25 marathons and had a dream to run the ‘Everest Marathon’, from the Everest Base Camp to Namche to inspire others to exceed their own limitations.
Things, however, sometimes do not turn out the way you had hoped, planned or expected. He discovered that running the marathon was only half the challenge. Reaching the base camp, an altitude of 5380 m under the harshest of weather conditions, fighting altitude sickness and tough mountainous terrain were other challenges he had to overcome. He even had to duct tape his prosthetic limb that broke down midway in order to prevent its screws from
falling apart.
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He fought against all the adversities and made it, but got very sick upon reaching there. He had to bear unbearable pain and had blisters on the stump where his leg had been amputated, and according to him, the two nights he had to spend at the base camp were the most painful ones of his life. The doctor advised to evacuate him to a warmer place, but he was adamant to run the marathon.
However, when his condition further deteriorated they decided against it and called for an emergency helicopter to fly him to Kathmandu. Everyone who gathered to pay an emotional farewell cheered him on for his determination and perseverance to have made it so far. It was not the achievement he had hoped for but it was definitely not short of being inspirational.
“Every run tells a story. For every failure there is hope within. And in every ending there’s an achievement and a new beginning,” said Abdullah.
rabik@sattya.org
