The Students Run Los Angeles (SRLA) completed their 2012 annual marathon on Sunday, March 18, with over 1,000 participants. A city-wide program that was first created 24 years ago, SRLA gives an opportunity to passionate runners from any age with the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) students being their first priority and focus to run 26.2 miles and to earn a medal for completion in the end.
This year, 17 Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies (LACES) students participated in the 26.2 miles marathon, which started from the Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles and ended near the Santa Monica Pier. Jose Rojas, the LACES SRLA Club sponsor and AP U.S. history teacher, first introduced this organization to the LACES students. From his experience with running eight marathons, he believes the best part of a marathon is finishing it with pride and commitment.
“It’s not simply about running,” Rojas said. “Marathons help teenagers set long term goals and become more aware of their health.” He hopes that the students will continue participating in the marathon even in college because of its great benefits and the quality of this opportunity.
This season, all 17 runners finished the entire run after six months of rigorous practices that began in September. Whitney Kim, a senior at LACES and one of the runners, had joined SRLA last year.
“The sense of everyone trying their best with great effort with human persistence on an almost impossible goal makes the marathon great,” Kim said. “It’s really interesting. Everyone should try to run it at least once in their lifetime.”
