Honda support Wings for Life World Run

Honda had a strong presence in Killarney at the weekend as vehicle sponsor of the first Wings for Life World Run which took place around the Ring of Kerry on Sunday last, writes Trish Whelan.

Marathon athletes joined many Irish stars and over 600 Irish runners on the start-line, all in aid of spinal cord injury research.

The Irish event was part of a global event attracting over 35,000 people in 32 countries across 13 time zones and all four seasons, all running at exactly the same time.

There was no traditional finish line - instead the Honda CR-V acted as the moving finish line, pursuing runners along the route. The CR-V set off 30 minutes after the start, travelling at 15km/h.

The last man standing was Leixlip, Co Kildare native John O'Regan who managed 49.2 kms in 3 hrs 33 mins, running from Killarney to the village of Kells, on the Ring of Kerry. The last woman standing was Louth woman Alison Kirwan now living in Killorglin with 30.4 kms in 2 hrs 28 mins before being caught by the CR-V Catcher Car which was accelerating in speed by 1km for every hour of the race.

In Ireland, there are around 1,700 people who are paralysed as a result of spinal cord injury with 50 new cases every year, of which 40 percent are due to road traffic accidents.

Globally, the run raised over €3 million for spinal cord injury research. The worldwide winners were Lemawork Ketema of Ethiopia and Elise Selvikvag Molvik of Norway. But everyone who took part was a winner!