WORLD HARMONY RUN
11,000 MILE TORCH RELAY THROUGH U.S.
LAUNCHED FROM NEW YORK Run is Covering 25,000 Miles in 70 Countries
NEW YORK (April 16) – A 50-state relay run
for international world harmony began its 11,000-mile journey Saturday
(April 16) when a team of 12 runners left New York City and headed
towards New Jersey and beyond.
The World Harmony Run seeks to bridge “cultural and social
barriers, and all the boundaries that separate nation from nation.
The trials on the road to world harmony are no greater than the
courage of those who accept the challenge,” said nine-time
Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis, who is a spokesman for the Run.
The 11,000-mile U.S. run is part of a global World Harmony Run,
which includes simultaneous events in 70 different nations throughout
North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia.
The U.S. portion of the Run was launched Saturday afternoon when
teams of runners converged in New York City from kick-off points
in four of the city’s main boroughs. Grammy Award winning
singer-songwriter Addiwittya Roberta Flack joined in singing the
World Harmony Run song at the opening ceremony, which was attended
by ambassadors to the United Nations, as well as New York City Councilman
James Gennaro.
Dr. Wolfgang Trautwein, the Deputy Permanent Representative to the
United Nations from Germany noted that “to run in a spirit
of harmony is really a form of true humane thinking therefore, I
am so pleased that so many young people from so many different parts
of this world have joined here today.”
During their four months on the road, the runners will stop off
at local grade and high schools, working with school officials nationwide
to share the ideals of world harmony in school curriculums. The
Run will also meet community groups along the route to recognize
their activities that promote goodwill at grassroots levels.
The event is organised by the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team, the world’s
largest organiser of ultra-distance races. The organisation sponsors
dozens of major athletic events each year, including a 3,100-mile
race in New York, world-class triathlons in Australia, and a 16.4-mile
swim across Lake Zurich in Switzerland.
Sri Chinmoy, founder of the Run, is an athlete and philosopher who
believes that sport is a powerful instrument for promoting global
harmony. “May each and every individual each day have a new
dream of world harmony,” said Sri Chinmoy.
Passing from hand to hand a flaming torch, the runners will slowly
wind their way by foot through the 48 mainland states, with special
events in Hawaii and Alaska, before returning to New York in August.
Words to World Harmony Run song:
Run, run, run, run, run, run, World Harmony Run.
We are the oneness and fullness of tomorrow’s sun.
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