Today I was running the 6,7km along with 35'000 other women, all of us totally motivated and full of positive vibes! There were pink wigs, purple tutus, neon leg warmers, leopard-printed leggings, fake boobs, fun hair rollers, oversize sunglasses and funny animal ears to be seen, just to mention a few.
Various companies had put up teams. The Boucheron girls looked liked they had just stepped out of the jewellery store. The George V team looked very sporty and poised in purple tank tops, la Gym Suedoise did have a distinct Swedish touch, the Carrefour team turned up by the hundreds but seemed to be pretty out of shape, Yoplait were looking sharp in their bright outfit and Groupama seemed to be having a ball, screaming and shouting every time they passed a music band along the way. They were also pretty fit runners, I might add, as was the George V team!
After a quick warm-up session to the tunes of the Beach Boys (loving it!) on this chilly morning, we started in waves of approx. 2000 girls, pretty big wave, ehh? We were cheered on by all the Dads and kids standing all along the side walk from the starting to the finishing line. Some with home-made posters cheering "Maman, tu est la meilleures!".
Samba groups, Classical Music ensembles, Gospel singers, African musicians even a Scottish Bag pipe band encouraged us to keep going! Kudos to the pink lady band who walked the entire stretch playing their instruments, some of them quite cumbersome and heavy!
Every year, I end up spending more time standing on the Pont d'Iena waiting to start than running the actual race but who's complaining? The idea of standing underneath the impressive Eiffel Tour, participating in the drive to raise awareness for breast cancer and just being part of one of Paris's yearly highlights kept me smiling all the way across the finishing line.
Vivent les Parisiennes!!!
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