Rachelle Axten of Minton travelled more than 10,000 kilometres to run a marathon of 42 km, but it was all in the name of raising funds for a charity close to her heart.
Axten completed her first full marathon in Rio de Janerio, Brazil to help raise funds and awareness for the Canadian Diabetes Association. She complete the race in just over three hours and had a great time doing it.
"It was a lot of fun," said Axten. "My first marathon went a lot better than I expected it to. After I finished the race and went back to the hotel, I felt great. My mom couldn't believe how good I felt."
In addition to completing her first marathon, Axten has also raised $6,200 so far for diabetes. And she wasn't the only one down there raising for the cause. In total, Team Diabetes Canada had 65 participants in the race, and they were all raising funds.
Axten spent a total of five days in Brazil and she said the weather was beautiful every day, except race day.
"It rained like crazy the entire day of the race," she said.
The rain wasn't necessarily a bad thing for the race as Axten said she would much rather run in the rain than the heat of Brazil.
Although the race was the reason for her southern trip, Axten said she also enjoyed her time down there with Team Diabetes Canada.
"We had lots of team meetings and suppers leading up to the race," she said. "It was nice to be part of a big group, and to hear about their stories of how diabetes affected them."
Axten's grandpa, and dad both have diabetes and it made her want to get involved with helping raise funds for the disease. Anytime she had trouble training, Axten said she would think of her dad and grandpa to get the extra motivation.
She also wants to teach people about diabetes. In Brazil, Axten ran the marathon with lots of people who live with diabetes and she said it was great to see them and hear their stories.
"It goes to show you that if you have diabetes and take care of yourself, it won't slow you down," said Axten. "The people with diabetes had no problem running the marathon."
Axten is still raising funds for the Canadian Diabetes Association, and you may make a pledge to her by visiting www.teamdiabetes.ca. She has until September to raise funds for her race in Brazil, but she is also accepting donations for a 10-km run in Saskatoon Aug. 25. People may send a cheque, made payable to the Canadian Diabetes Association, to P.O. Box 261, Minton, SK, S0C 1T0. Anyone with questions may also contact her at 306-861-9789.
She added that the support she has received from the community has been great.
"I just want to thank everyone for the support they continue to show me," said Axten.
