Yesterday, the 47th Chicago Marathon was held, one of the largest in the world, which on this occasion broke records for the number of participants, as many as 53,000 of them were on the track.
It wasn’t just Chicago that was breaking records; this year, 39 Serbs did too, among whom the blind runner Milan Petrović attracted the most attention. He is trying to achieve a true feat and run all 6 largest marathons in the world, including those in New York, Boston, Tokyo, Berlin, and London.
And while the Serbian marathon runners were running the 42km and 195m distance, our countrymen wholeheartedly helped them, having organized a fan stand for the first time. Flags were waving at the stand, voices were not spared, and when they faded, there was a DJ to lift the atmosphere.
At the fan point, we met one of its creators, Darko Habuš, director of the Belgrade Marathon, who is currently staying in Chicago as a guest of the marathon organizers and our Consulate, and the Consul General of Serbia, Marko Nikolić, was also there, following the event with his wife and three children.
And then our fan group erupted, because our hero, Milan Petrović, appeared on the track, accompanied by his inseparable friend and comrade-in-arms, ultramarathon runner Dejan Ivanković. Milan caused ovations not only from the Serbian, but also the Chicago audience, which knows how to appreciate brave people with a big heart. After a short break, the two of them continued towards the finish line, and we prepared to welcome the other Serbian competitors.
In the end, all of them successfully finished the race, no one was injured or dropped out, so the overall assessment of their performance was a clean ten.
It should also be noted that on the streets of the largest Serbian city after Belgrade, in addition to the record number of marathon runners, a record number of spectators also appeared. Chicago residents used this opportunity to show their political stance, so we saw many posters criticizing Trump and his government, especially the mass arrest of illegal immigrants and the deployment of the National Guard in this city.
After all, see how it looked in the exclusive report by our editor Antonije Kovačević…
For more exclusive reports and updates about the lives of Serbian and Balkan diaspora communities in America and worldwide, follow our YouTube channel Serbian News USA by clicking THIS LINK!
Author/Video: Antonije Kovačević
Video Editing: Ivana Talijan