This year the annual meeting of the Rotary Fellowship For Runners took place in Munich at the Munich Marathon. 37 runners, more than 60 participants at the event with a great programme.
There are still friends who are unaware of the Rotary Fellowships. Reason enough to change that immediately. Rotary Fellowships are international groups that share common interests. As a member of a Fellowship, you can share your hobby or professional interests with others. There is hardly an area of interest for which there is no Rotary Fellowship. A list of Fellowships can be found at the website of Rotary International.
Anyone who calls running their hobby should visit the Rotary Fellowship For Runners (RFFR). Once a year, the RFFR meets for a joint run with a great supporting programme and often also the opportunity to explore the host country together as part of a round trip. In 2005, the friends ran together the first marathon in Paris and last year in Cape Town. Started as a purely marathon runners' fellowship, the RFFR is now open to all runners and events are chosen that offer other distances in addition to the marathon, such as 10 km, half marathons and a relay.
After Berlin in 2006, Germany was once again the host country in 2024. From 11 to 13 October, more than 60 friends from all over the world met in Munich to take part in the Munich Marathon. Among them were 37 runners with their partners and, in some cases, their children. The runners from Germany made up the largest group, followed by France and Austria. Norway and the UK also sent representatives. For Heather and Keith Fagg, the journey from Australia was not too far to join the running fellows.
The supporting programme was impressive. On the very first evening, the get-together in the Löwenbräukeller was an opportunity to enjoy Bavarian culture to the full. This was followed the next morning by a highly interesting guided tour of Munich city centre and a guided tour of the BMW Museum in the afternoon. On the evening before the marathon, the runners traditionally fortified themselves for the exertions of the next day at a pasta party. District Governor 1842 Wolfgang Wilke was a guest here and encouraged everyone. On this evening, all runners also receive a standardised running shirt, which is specially designed and printed for the occasion and identifies everyone as Rotarians and RFFR members. Of course, the ‘End Polio Now’ motto was also featurered on our shirts.
The next day, 37 runners from the RFFR took to the starting line in rather unpleasant weather conditions (rain and wind). 11 completed the full distance, 11 the half marathon, 3 the 10 km and the RFFR provided 3 relay teams with 12 participants. Even though the Olympic motto, not the times, is the most important thing for the RFFR, one result should be mentioned: Gerrit Wegener from RC Berlin-Gedächtniskirche finished 48th overall and 45th in the men's category in a fantastic 2:49:15. Congratulations!
The RFFR was rewarded for its exertions at the farewell dinner in the Schlosswirtschaft Schwaige at Nymphenburg Palace in the evening. Past District Governor 1842 Nicolai Ehlers congratulated the RFFR on their run and the fantastic weekend in Munich. Everyone is eagerly awaiting the farewell dinner, at the end of which the destination for the coming year will be announced: in October 2025, the team will be travelling to Palma de Mallorca. If you would like to attend and are not yet a member of the RFFR, you should download the registration form from the RFFR website immediately.
Such an event is only possible with a very active and committed board, which the RFFR has. A host club is also needed on site. In Munich, this was RC München-International, which played a major role in the success of this fantastic event. In return, the RFFR supports a project of the RC München-International with the surplus from the participation fees of the event. The surpluses will be donated to ‘Frame Runners’, special bike frames that allow people with mobility impairments to take part in running disciplines in athletics.
Text Stefan Sattler, RC Bornheim. We thank you for your kind permission. Translation DeepL; Fotos Hans Geesmann
