A Filipino domestic helper based in Hong Kong will run at London Marathon in April while serving a noble task of raising funds for good cause.
It will be the first marathon race for Theresa Calo, a 15-year veteran in Hong Kong. She has started an online crowdfunding campaign which aims to raise £2,000 (US$2,432) for Oxfam.
Calo admitted she first took up running originally to lose weight, but she fell in love with the hobby and soon started to join organized races.
“As a helper I work long hours,” she says, “but it’s always possible to find time to train if you are serious about getting fit. Where there is a will there is a way.”
She has since participated in the 63-kilometer HK168 race last November and finished 137th out of 326 female runners in the Vibram HK100.
For London Marathon, Calo will be sponsored by Pherform – a Hong Kong gym offering a host of services designed especially for women “united in becoming their best selves”.
She will run alongside 30,000 other runners selected out of nearly 400,000 applicants.
“This will be my first marathon…I’ve been running in long-distance and ultra trail running for the last year,” she said in her campaign. “I would like to help raise money for Oxfam.”
Calo’s team, “Bandilang Pinas” are paying for all the costs for taking part in the race, so every penny raised goes directly to Oxfam.
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