What was not at the Sunday marathon! Enthusiastic spectators, runners who moved, stories that give us the courage and will to fight all the problems of life, no matter how insurmountable the obstacles in front of us. Among the cases that are a prime example of this are the Finish Liners, a group of runners, one of the largest in the race, who run for a good cause. A documentary directed by Eliana Abravanel in 2016 called “The Finish Line” became its own “start”. In it, he presented the lives of three marathon runners who, in order to break the thread, had to fight with age and other stereotypes.

Her idea of ​​presenting the race as a glorious participation rather than a competition gave birth to a charity initiative: MDA finishers have two goals. They run with people suffering from neuromuscular diseases to make them more visible by raising public awareness. At the same time, they encourage us to include sports in our lives.

In 2021, the audience idolized the suffering Andreas Hotz, who entered the stadium to the finish line along with Deputy Minister Domna Mihajlidou and finishers pushing his wheelchair. The young man, one of the original MDA member athletes, passed away last May and the members decided to wear an armband with his name in memory of him and push his empty wheelchair in this year’s race. Also, two members of the MDA, Maria Vlahou and Haris Aslanidis, ran the 42 km route with finishers and experienced shocking support from the people. So did the finishers who ran the 10km course on Saturday, November 12, accompanied by MDA member Stratis Vugiukas. Their slogan is: “It doesn’t matter how you run, it matters why!”. And never put it down!