Prof. Erik Ranschaert, PhD, a member of AuntMinnieEurope.com's editorial advisory board, and his son, William, successfully completed the Amsterdam marathon on Sunday 20 October.
"Goals achieved!" said Ranschaert, past president of the European Society of Medical Imaging Informatics. "Great marathon with excellent conditions and impressive participation."
Job done! Erik clocked a highly respectable time of 3 hours 49 mins -- just 32 mins more than William's time. The duo also took part in the Rome marathon in March 2024.
A record number of 22,500 runners participated in the 48th edition of the full marathon, which had a distance of 42.195 km, according to the NL Times. About 15,000 runners started in the Olympic Stadium, while the other runners began outside the stadium. After 1 km, the two groups met and ran the same route. The route went under the Rijksmuseum, along the Amstel, and through the Vondelpark, with all runners finishing in the stadiu
"My legs are still a bit stiff, but I can take the stairs better than after Rome, when I needed an elevator on the first day!" Erik quipped.
The last 7 km was very tough, he added. "The whole run I stayed in front of the 3:50 pacer, but he reached me at the Vondelpark, so I knew I had to give it an extra push. I was so happy to reach the stadium!"
