WEBVTT - Running Through 50 Years of Berlin Marathon History with Race Director Mark Milde 0:00:00.210 --> 0:00:03.270 New York Road Runners is a nonprofit organization with a 0:00:03.270 --> 0:00:06.690 vision to build healthier lives and stronger communities through the 0:00:06.690 --> 0:00:10.770 transformative power of running. The support of members and donors 0:00:10.770 --> 0:00:13.980 like you helps us achieve our mission to transform the 0:00:13.980 --> 0:00:17.250 health and well- being of our communities through inclusive and 0:00:17.250 --> 0:00:22.140 accessible running experiences, empowering all to achieve their potential. Learn 0:00:22.140 --> 0:00:25.980 more and contribute at nyrr. org/ donate. 0:00:29.940 --> 0:00:34.349 Thank you, New York. Today, we're reminded of the power 0:00:34.350 --> 0:00:39.210 of community and the power of coming together. Athletes, on 0:00:39.210 --> 0:00:39.780 your mark. 0:00:41.909 --> 0:00:45.450 The first woman to finish for the second straight year 0:00:45.450 --> 0:00:49.080 here in the New York City Marathon is Miki Gorman, a smiling 0:00:49.080 --> 0:00:52.260 Miki Gorman. And why not? 2:29: 30, the time for Grete Waitz. 0:00:52.260 --> 0:00:56.610 Look at the emotion of Shalane Flanagan as she comes to 0:00:56.610 --> 0:01:00.510 the line. Pointing to his chest, pointing to the USA 0:01:00.510 --> 0:01:10.110 he so proudly wears across his chest, a great day for Meb Keflezighi. 0:01:10.350 --> 0:01:13.950 Hello everybody and welcome to Set the Pace, presented by 0:01:13.950 --> 0:01:17.429 Peloton. We are the official podcast of New York Road 0:01:17.430 --> 0:01:19.110 Runners. Great to have you with us this week. I'm 0:01:19.110 --> 0:01:22.410 your host and New York Road Runners CEO, Rob Simmelkjaer. 0:01:22.410 --> 0:01:27.390 With me, my co- host as always, Becs Gentry. And Becs- 0:01:27.569 --> 0:01:27.750 Hello. 0:01:27.810 --> 0:01:32.580 How is it going? How's the training going for this 0:01:33.120 --> 0:01:38.610 worldwide marathon bonanza you're getting ready for, these seven marathons 0:01:38.610 --> 0:01:41.760 in seven days on seven planets, whatever it is? How's 0:01:41.760 --> 0:01:42.330 it going? 0:01:42.690 --> 0:01:45.720 Well, I mean, I feel like your training right now 0:01:45.720 --> 0:01:50.760 is edging you towards understanding what I'm doing again. You 0:01:50.760 --> 0:01:53.700 had a hiatus and you're back into the realms of 0:01:53.700 --> 0:01:56.730 understanding this marathon training, but thank you for asking. It's 0:01:56.730 --> 0:02:01.110 going well. I'm on a very appreciated drop- down week 0:02:01.140 --> 0:02:04.410 in the intensity of my training, which came as a 0:02:04.410 --> 0:02:07.830 surprise on Sunday night. My coach was like, " Oh, we 0:02:07.830 --> 0:02:09.210 should be doing a drop- down week." I was like, "Ah, 0:02:09.720 --> 0:02:13.770 this is fantastic. I'll take it." So I actually snoozed 0:02:13.770 --> 0:02:15.840 my alarm this morning and was like, " I'm going to 0:02:15.840 --> 0:02:19.530 push my workout back because I can." And it was 0:02:19.770 --> 0:02:22.139 really nice and I will say having a full rest 0:02:22.139 --> 0:02:26.730 day yesterday, my legs felt fabulous today for my run. 0:02:26.730 --> 0:02:31.440 I really felt strong. And I know our runners who 0:02:31.440 --> 0:02:35.970 are a few weeks out of Berlin, like yourself, or 0:02:35.970 --> 0:02:39.360 nine weeks out from New York probably really in the 0:02:39.360 --> 0:02:41.639 thick of it for both of those races. You're at 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:43.590 the end of it almost for Berlin and you're really 0:02:44.310 --> 0:02:47.638 champing at the bit of greatness for New York. But 0:02:48.000 --> 0:02:51.359 take those rest days because as much as you feel 0:02:51.360 --> 0:02:54.630 like you might be missing out from your training, it's 0:02:54.630 --> 0:02:57.959 going to do your body and your mind a lot 0:02:58.020 --> 0:03:01.320 of good. So take it from one here who just 0:03:01.350 --> 0:03:02.581 had one and really appreciated it. 0:03:02.581 --> 0:03:06.900 Becs, for people training for fall marathons, that drop- down 0:03:06.900 --> 0:03:10.410 week may be a new concept to many people. And I 0:03:10.410 --> 0:03:13.230 give Runna, the app that we're partnered with in New 0:03:13.230 --> 0:03:16.709 York Road Runners, credit because it also programmed in a drop- 0:03:16.710 --> 0:03:19.530 down week for me last week. I didn't know what 0:03:19.530 --> 0:03:21.150 was going on. I was like, " Okay. It doesn't seem 0:03:21.150 --> 0:03:23.669 to want me to run very much this week." I 0:03:23.669 --> 0:03:26.100 didn't entirely follow it. I ran a few more miles 0:03:26.100 --> 0:03:28.350 on Saturday than it asked me to, but only a 0:03:28.350 --> 0:03:30.660 few more because I wanted to run the New York 0:03:30.660 --> 0:03:32.639 Road Runner's 12- mile training run- 0:03:32.639 --> 0:03:32.731 There we go. 0:03:32.731 --> 0:03:35.940 ... in Central Park on Saturday, which was a great time, by the 0:03:35.940 --> 0:03:39.540 way. I ran it with our coach, Roberto Mandje. The 0:03:39.540 --> 0:03:42.480 two of us ran together the whole way, had such 0:03:42.480 --> 0:03:43.861 a great time. Roberto is such a great- 0:03:43.861 --> 0:03:44.251 You looked very happy. 0:03:44.251 --> 0:03:47.820 ... pacer and a great partner out there. We had 0:03:47.820 --> 0:03:50.790 a lot of fun, but that was the end of 0:03:50.790 --> 0:03:54.450 my, quote, unquote, " drop- down week." Becs, what is that drop- 0:03:54.450 --> 0:03:56.220 down week? Why should people do that? 0:03:57.210 --> 0:04:02.670 Good question. It is essentially a period of time that 0:04:04.590 --> 0:04:07.470 your body gets its rewards, is a really nice way 0:04:07.470 --> 0:04:10.350 of putting it. All this hard work, all of the 0:04:10.350 --> 0:04:13.830 energy that you're putting into your training, it needs... Your 0:04:13.830 --> 0:04:18.810 body is it that I'm talking about. It needs some time to absorb all of 0:04:18.810 --> 0:04:22.830 that, in order to make the changes, the adaptations of 0:04:22.830 --> 0:04:27.419 greatness that you're striving for. You can keep going. Of 0:04:27.420 --> 0:04:29.400 course, there are definitely people, but most of them are 0:04:29.400 --> 0:04:33.120 very highly trained, very experienced runners, who just keep going 0:04:33.120 --> 0:04:35.940 and they might be on a training program that would 0:04:36.120 --> 0:04:38.070 get them to peak at a race. That's something you 0:04:38.070 --> 0:04:41.190 might hear, a terminology in the running world. But for 0:04:41.190 --> 0:04:44.219 most of us, especially those of us who have other roles in life, 0:04:45.240 --> 0:04:48.810 having a drop- down week is just your intensity decreases. 0:04:48.839 --> 0:04:51.779 Your duration of your runs will probably decrease. And it 0:04:51.779 --> 0:04:55.110 gives your body that ability to take a big sigh 0:04:55.170 --> 0:05:00.900 of relief and say, " Ah, okay, this isn't all tough. 0:05:01.110 --> 0:05:04.140 This is going to be fine." And the goal of 0:05:04.140 --> 0:05:06.000 it is that you come out of your drop- down 0:05:06.060 --> 0:05:11.430 week stronger, re- energized, and ready to continue training on 0:05:11.430 --> 0:05:17.130 that uphill cycle towards your race day. So really enjoy 0:05:17.130 --> 0:05:21.120 it. Get that PT in. Get that rest in, and 0:05:21.120 --> 0:05:23.760 reset your mind because gosh, the first time I did 0:05:23.760 --> 0:05:26.010 a drop- down week, it really helped my mental health 0:05:26.010 --> 0:05:29.130 I think more than anything because I came into it 0:05:29.190 --> 0:05:35.279 quite fazed by the addition to my daily schedule of 0:05:35.279 --> 0:05:38.490 this marathon training. And I came out of my drop- down 0:05:38.490 --> 0:05:42.180 week ready to go back to it because I saw 0:05:42.240 --> 0:05:46.800 the changes of, oh wow, I feel fantastic. I really 0:05:46.800 --> 0:05:48.779 want to run again. I really want to run long 0:05:48.779 --> 0:05:53.190 again and I can run faster. So that was the reward. 0:05:53.850 --> 0:05:56.130 I love it. I love it. Well, for everybody out 0:05:56.130 --> 0:06:00.420 there knee- deep in training for fall marathons or whatever 0:06:00.420 --> 0:06:02.700 it is you may be training for, that's a good 0:06:02.700 --> 0:06:05.849 tip. So an app like Runna or something like that 0:06:05.850 --> 0:06:07.560 is a great way to make sure you get in 0:06:07.560 --> 0:06:10.560 the rest that you need as you get ready because 0:06:10.560 --> 0:06:13.560 we want to see you at the starting line. We 0:06:13.560 --> 0:06:16.920 don't want you injured. We want you there. So everybody, 0:06:16.920 --> 0:06:18.930 keep it up. Hopefully, you're out there listening to us 0:06:18.930 --> 0:06:21.480 on your long run this weekend. We got a lot 0:06:21.480 --> 0:06:23.460 of them happening right now around the New York City 0:06:23.460 --> 0:06:26.250 area and beyond, so I'm out there with you. I'm 0:06:26.250 --> 0:06:28.560 doing 18 plus this weekend, so I'll probably be running 0:06:28.560 --> 0:06:32.670 with you as you listen to this podcast. Yes. Why 0:06:32.670 --> 0:06:35.250 am I running? Because I'm running Berlin as I announced 0:06:35.250 --> 0:06:39.450 last week. And thanks for everybody out there, the words 0:06:39.450 --> 0:06:41.820 of support. Thanks for the donations as well. As I 0:06:41.820 --> 0:06:44.490 mentioned, I'm running in support of Team for Kids, our 0:06:44.820 --> 0:06:48.330 youth and community program fundraising vehicle here at New York 0:06:48.330 --> 0:06:52.710 Road Runners. You can find my page on my Instagram, rtsimmel. 0:06:52.710 --> 0:06:54.990 I would love to have your support as we try 0:06:54.990 --> 0:06:57.330 to continue to grow our programs to get kids and 0:06:57.330 --> 0:07:00.960 adults running in New York City and beyond. It's my 0:07:00.960 --> 0:07:03.989 first marathon in over 10 years, so I have a 0:07:03.990 --> 0:07:08.010 lot of questions, and here today to help answer some 0:07:08.010 --> 0:07:11.460 of those questions, the race director of the BMW Berlin 0:07:11.460 --> 0:07:14.730 Marathon, my friend, Mark Milde. He'll be our guest in 0:07:14.730 --> 0:07:16.590 just a couple of minutes and he's going to tell 0:07:16.590 --> 0:07:19.200 us all about what it's like to race 26. 2 0:07:19.200 --> 0:07:22.800 miles through the landmarks of one of Germany's most storied 0:07:22.800 --> 0:07:26.250 cities. This is a race that has such a fascinating 0:07:26.250 --> 0:07:29.430 history, just like the city in which it is held, 0:07:29.760 --> 0:07:32.100 so I can't wait to talk to Mark. His father 0:07:32.490 --> 0:07:36.180 founded this marathon back in the early '70s of course, 0:07:36.180 --> 0:07:39.120 and Mark's going to take us through that incredible history 0:07:39.120 --> 0:07:42.060 and the family history as well. And then after that, 0:07:42.060 --> 0:07:45.180 of course Meb will be with us for today's Member Moment with 0:07:45.180 --> 0:07:49.170 Paola Marte. Paola is a Team for Kids mentor, a 0:07:49.170 --> 0:07:52.350 New York Road Runners volunteer, and a four- time TCS 0:07:52.350 --> 0:07:54.780 New York City Marathon finisher. Paola is going to have 0:07:54.780 --> 0:07:57.900 some great advice for those of you training for this 0:07:57.900 --> 0:08:00.840 year's marathon. And then of course, we'll have our Meb 0:08:00.840 --> 0:08:04.950 Minute. We're on week seven of the 16- week training cycle 0:08:04.950 --> 0:08:07.830 for this year's race. Meb is going to help us 0:08:07.830 --> 0:08:11.670 focus on what we should be prioritizing with nine weeks 0:08:11.670 --> 0:08:13.320 to go, so stay tuned for that. 0:08:14.130 --> 0:08:17.190 No matter your summer plans, Peloton is your partner in 0:08:17.190 --> 0:08:20.310 reaching your running goals. With a variety of running and 0:08:20.310 --> 0:08:23.790 walking content and features, you can do everything, from tracking 0:08:23.790 --> 0:08:26.880 your walks outdoors with the Peloton App, to hitting your 0:08:26.880 --> 0:08:30.270 pace targets during interval and progression runs on the Peloton 0:08:30.270 --> 0:08:33.840 Tread. Whether you're running a favorite racecourse from home or 0:08:33.840 --> 0:08:37.829 exploring new routes outside this summer, Peloton supports your running 0:08:37.830 --> 0:08:41.490 journey every step of the way. All- access membership is 0:08:41.490 --> 0:08:46.290 separate. Learn more about Peloton Tread at onepeloton. com/ running. 0:08:46.860 --> 0:08:49.830 Find the Peloton App in the Apple, Android, and Google 0:08:49.830 --> 0:08:50.819 app stores today. 0:08:51.300 --> 0:08:55.020 Today's guest is Mark Milde, the race director of the 0:08:55.020 --> 0:09:00.990 iconic BMW Berlin Marathon. With the marathon celebrating its 50th anniversary 0:09:00.990 --> 0:09:04.559 this year, Mark has a lifetime of experience when it 0:09:04.559 --> 0:09:08.220 comes to this race because his father founded it 50 0:09:08.220 --> 0:09:12.090 years ago, and he's lived a lifetime as part of 0:09:12.090 --> 0:09:15.300 this marathon. Of course, it's known as being flat and 0:09:15.300 --> 0:09:18.570 fast, but there's so much more to the Berlin Marathon. 0:09:18.990 --> 0:09:22.229 The history that it has seen, I think, unparalleled among 0:09:22.230 --> 0:09:25.830 all the marathons in the Abbott World Marathon Major series, 0:09:26.070 --> 0:09:28.080 and I am thrilled to have Mark. We sit on 0:09:28.080 --> 0:09:31.290 the board of AWMM together, so I see him often, 0:09:31.290 --> 0:09:33.750 and now I get to have him on my podcast 0:09:33.750 --> 0:09:36.570 a few weeks before I attempt to run his marathon. 0:09:36.570 --> 0:09:37.920 Mark, thanks so much for being here. 0:09:38.700 --> 0:09:40.770 Yeah. Thanks for having me and hello to everyone. 0:09:41.760 --> 0:09:43.709 Hello. Hello. I know we've got a lot of New 0:09:43.710 --> 0:09:46.980 Yorkers and other listeners to our podcast who are getting 0:09:47.340 --> 0:09:52.020 set and ready to run Berlin in the 50th anniversary. I 0:09:52.020 --> 0:09:54.990 guess my first question for you is just how is it 0:09:54.990 --> 0:09:58.709 going to be special this year? I mean, the 50th anniversary is obviously 0:09:58.710 --> 0:10:02.010 a big, big deal. I know that you and your 0:10:02.010 --> 0:10:05.070 colleagues, Jurgen Locke, and others are working hard to make 0:10:05.070 --> 0:10:09.120 this a great event. Are there any special surprises or 0:10:09.120 --> 0:10:11.820 things people can look forward to this year for the 0:10:11.820 --> 0:10:14.309 50th anniversary of the Berlin Marathon? 0:10:16.620 --> 0:10:23.760 Good question. Obviously, somehow these numbers, if there's an anniversary 0:10:23.760 --> 0:10:30.510 coming up, if it's 25, 50, or 100 even which happens at some 0:10:30.510 --> 0:10:35.969 races, it's somehow magical and draws the people and the 0:10:35.970 --> 0:10:42.179 attention towards all these races. And we are trying to 0:10:42.720 --> 0:10:47.490 play on this or to make this a very memorable 0:10:48.240 --> 0:10:53.610 race, and having had seen you guys, I mean, I think you 0:10:53.610 --> 0:10:56.760 are now in your 54th year or 53rd year, I'm 0:10:56.760 --> 0:11:01.770 not 100% sure, and our colleagues in Boston even had their 0:11:01.770 --> 0:11:07.380 125th anniversary. So we're picking up things and ideas from 0:11:07.380 --> 0:11:13.170 everywhere, and we obviously cannot change the basic rules of 0:11:13.170 --> 0:11:16.319 the marathon. I mean, it's not going to be 50, 000 0:11:16.320 --> 0:11:20.339 meters now because it's 50 years. Although, this might be 0:11:20.340 --> 0:11:24.090 a tempting idea. No. Rest assured, it's going to be 0:11:24.690 --> 0:11:32.010 no more than 42,195 meters, which is obviously the normal 0:11:32.010 --> 0:11:33.569 duration of the marathon, and- 0:11:33.600 --> 0:11:36.090 26. 2 miles to us Americans, yes. 0:11:36.090 --> 0:11:42.780 Yes. Of course. Of course. So that's going to be unchanged, but along 0:11:42.780 --> 0:11:47.849 the course, we want to do some things which makes 0:11:47.850 --> 0:11:54.870 it more special. Again, you should not expect mountains or 0:11:54.870 --> 0:11:58.319 hills or anything that you have to climb, but- 0:11:58.620 --> 0:12:02.010 Nobody wants that, Mark. Nobody's coming to Berlin for mountains or hills. 0:12:02.040 --> 0:12:03.300 We're coming for flat. 0:12:05.670 --> 0:12:08.160 That is true. We are trying to put up the 0:12:08.160 --> 0:12:15.510 numbers of music along the route. We will have 90 0:12:15.510 --> 0:12:21.270 bands playing music, and we have some balconies, we hope, 0:12:21.510 --> 0:12:25.170 where people will be putting out the music that they 0:12:25.170 --> 0:12:30.120 are listening to which is on the radio. So we are hoping 0:12:30.420 --> 0:12:33.690 on the cooperation of the Berlin people and trying to make it 0:12:33.690 --> 0:12:36.450 attractive for them as well to follow this race and 0:12:36.450 --> 0:12:40.709 to be part of this anniversary. And we are trying to engage 0:12:41.340 --> 0:12:46.590 with the Berliners as well in the lead- up in 0:12:46.590 --> 0:12:50.850 the run to the race. So we are going to have a 0:12:50.880 --> 0:12:55.710 kind of exhibition area just at the Brandenburg Gate, which 0:12:55.710 --> 0:13:00.960 will open up on the 17th of September where we'll be 0:13:00.960 --> 0:13:04.200 showcasing the history of our race and a little bit 0:13:04.200 --> 0:13:07.290 also of the marathon foot race, where there's a possibility for 0:13:07.290 --> 0:13:11.760 the Berliners and for the visitors to engage and get 0:13:11.760 --> 0:13:14.670 into touch with us and with the marathon. It's called 0:13:14.700 --> 0:13:18.360 the MOVE and Home of the Marathon, where we're going 0:13:18.360 --> 0:13:22.170 to have this on display, where we will have some 0:13:22.170 --> 0:13:27.750 memorabilia or some nice pictures and photographs of the history 0:13:27.750 --> 0:13:31.800 of our race, which as you stated before, has been 0:13:32.580 --> 0:13:35.940 quite a journey from where we started and what happened 0:13:35.940 --> 0:13:39.900 in Berlin in the last five decades. This is also 0:13:39.900 --> 0:13:44.220 the theme of our opening ceremony, which is also something new 0:13:44.610 --> 0:13:47.820 and something special, which will be happening on the Friday 0:13:47.820 --> 0:13:53.850 before race day. We will have a big stage at 0:13:53.910 --> 0:13:57.600 the Brandenburg Gate where we will be celebrating these five 0:13:57.600 --> 0:14:00.000 decades of running excellence in Berlin. 0:14:00.570 --> 0:14:03.510 Wow. Oh, my gosh, this absolutely sounds like a race 0:14:03.510 --> 0:14:06.209 not to be missed. I am a little bit envious 0:14:06.240 --> 0:14:09.600 of both you and Rob right now, Mark. Your father, 0:14:09.600 --> 0:14:14.010 Horst Milde, founded the race in 1974. What has it been 0:14:14.010 --> 0:14:18.090 like having this race as part of your life growing 0:14:18.090 --> 0:14:20.790 up and all the way through until today? 0:14:22.140 --> 0:14:30.630 Yeah. No. Yes. Obviously, the marathon, until a certain time, you could say it was a family 0:14:30.630 --> 0:14:40.770 member because, I mean, my parents had three kids. I'm 0:14:40.770 --> 0:14:45.450 in the middle, the guy in the middle. As far 0:14:45.450 --> 0:14:48.150 as I can remember, obviously, I can't remember the first 0:14:48.150 --> 0:14:50.370 and the second running of the race, but I remember 0:14:50.370 --> 0:14:56.130 that at a certain time, that was a time obviously 0:14:56.130 --> 0:15:01.170 before computers. If you want to make a copy of a 0:15:01.260 --> 0:15:04.770 paper that was written on a typewriter, then you had 0:15:04.770 --> 0:15:07.680 to go next door to a store to get it 0:15:07.830 --> 0:15:10.260 copied or duplicated or I think they called it Rank 0:15:10.260 --> 0:15:15.510 Xerox back at that time. So I remember that we 0:15:15.510 --> 0:15:19.170 kids were being used or had to work in folding 0:15:19.170 --> 0:15:24.630 up these letters for press releases. Back then, it was 0:15:24.630 --> 0:15:27.720 not an email blast being sent out, but they were 0:15:27.780 --> 0:15:32.400 sent out as letters. These were kind of things where 0:15:32.400 --> 0:15:37.560 we were starting as little kids to help out my 0:15:37.560 --> 0:15:40.260 father and the team. I mean, obviously, he didn't do 0:15:40.260 --> 0:15:44.790 it by himself. There was a strong team of other 0:15:44.790 --> 0:15:47.430 runners. I mean, my father was a former runner. And 0:15:47.430 --> 0:15:52.260 a strong team of other runners putting up this race, 0:15:52.260 --> 0:15:56.130 and they did it on a voluntary basis. They were 0:15:56.130 --> 0:15:58.710 all members in that club, and back at that time, there 0:15:58.710 --> 0:16:03.990 was no wages and money involved, so it was more 0:16:04.320 --> 0:16:08.280 something you did out of your own ambition. You wanted 0:16:08.280 --> 0:16:16.470 to do something for the club or for yourself to improve running or to 0:16:16.650 --> 0:16:20.850 bring running. Obviously, at first, not into the city. It 0:16:20.850 --> 0:16:23.730 was more like our race was happening like in New York, 0:16:23.730 --> 0:16:27.450 it started in Central Park. We were in a state, wood, 0:16:27.450 --> 0:16:32.040 which was also in the western part of Berlin, so 0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:38.820 the road that we were running on was under the 0:16:38.850 --> 0:16:42.270 protection of trees, but next to a highway. So it's 0:16:42.270 --> 0:16:50.670 kind of something different than obviously how you would plan 0:16:50.670 --> 0:16:52.800 a race now 50 years later. And then it was 0:16:54.600 --> 0:16:58.710 thanks to Fred Lebow and the New York Road Runners 0:16:59.430 --> 0:17:03.660 who were able to move from Central Park to the 0:17:03.660 --> 0:17:08.970 five boroughs that at some stage, we took that example 0:17:08.970 --> 0:17:12.990 and said, " Okay. New York is doing this." I mean, 0:17:13.109 --> 0:17:16.109 New York is one of these small cities in the world 0:17:16.109 --> 0:17:19.740 where we can easily refer to and say, " Okay. If 0:17:20.310 --> 0:17:22.619 you can make it there, we can make it here 0:17:22.619 --> 0:17:25.560 as well." Now, that's obviously a little bit easy to say, 0:17:25.560 --> 0:17:30.179 but I mean, the history runs a little bit deeper. 0:17:30.180 --> 0:17:33.750 I mean, West Berlin was divided also in three parts. 0:17:33.780 --> 0:17:40.170 There was British, French, American, and English part. And at 0:17:40.170 --> 0:17:47.910 some stage in 1981, the French military operation said, " Okay. 0:17:47.910 --> 0:17:52.590 We are going to organize a 25K race and we're going 0:17:52.590 --> 0:17:56.189 to do into the city." And the Allied forces still 0:17:56.190 --> 0:18:00.990 had some special rights in the city, so here, the 0:18:01.080 --> 0:18:04.169 German or the Berlin police could not say no because it 0:18:04.170 --> 0:18:09.300 was something that they were in charge. So when that 0:18:09.300 --> 0:18:13.590 happened, my father, he went to the police and said, " 0:18:13.590 --> 0:18:16.410 Okay. If you allow these guys to do it, you 0:18:16.590 --> 0:18:19.140 also have to allow us to do it." So that was kind 0:18:19.140 --> 0:18:25.170 of what you guys did in New York. For example, 0:18:25.170 --> 0:18:28.530 I think also, back at that time, the Stockholm Marathon 0:18:28.530 --> 0:18:32.550 was also run in the whole city. So these were the 0:18:32.550 --> 0:18:36.090 examples that my father and the others were using to 0:18:36.210 --> 0:18:40.710 get the permission of the city to roll it all out. 0:18:41.160 --> 0:18:47.070 Wow, incredible history, and two things strike me from that 0:18:47.070 --> 0:18:50.010 story. Number one, we all know the impact of the 0:18:50.070 --> 0:18:53.189 New York City Marathon, but the impact that going to 0:18:53.190 --> 0:18:56.790 the five boroughs had on other marathons like yours in 0:18:56.790 --> 0:19:00.990 Berlin really does strike me as, yeah, you had an example. 0:19:00.990 --> 0:19:02.820 If they can do it in New York, we can 0:19:02.820 --> 0:19:05.399 do it here. But then the political element, and your 0:19:05.400 --> 0:19:10.800 father, Mark, he had to know the political rules of 0:19:10.800 --> 0:19:12.869 the road to make something like that happen, which was 0:19:12.869 --> 0:19:17.129 incredible, given where Berlin was at that time, a divided 0:19:17.130 --> 0:19:21.690 city, with these quadrants that the different Allied forces still 0:19:21.690 --> 0:19:26.399 controlled. Now, I'm curious, by the time the '80s came 0:19:26.400 --> 0:19:33.090 around, Mark, and Berlin ultimately became reunified, you were certainly 0:19:33.510 --> 0:19:36.630 old enough to know what was going on. What was 0:19:36.630 --> 0:19:40.050 that time like? I mean, we all know those of 0:19:40.050 --> 0:19:43.080 a certain age can remember what those days were like 0:19:43.859 --> 0:19:47.220 in the late '80s and the early '90s when the 0:19:47.730 --> 0:19:52.020 Iron Curtain was falling and the Berlin Wall was falling. And 0:19:52.350 --> 0:19:57.480 this marathon had been obviously a West Berlin affair because 0:19:57.690 --> 0:19:59.670 that's where it had to be. Although, I read that the start 0:19:59.760 --> 0:20:04.530 was close enough to the wall and to the Brandenburg 0:20:04.530 --> 0:20:08.189 Gate that East Berliners could see it. They could actually 0:20:08.190 --> 0:20:11.129 see or were aware of what was going on. That 0:20:11.130 --> 0:20:16.020 first time that the race was able to run in 0:20:16.020 --> 0:20:19.710 an undivided Berlin, what was that like? 0:20:21.840 --> 0:20:27.840 That was obviously a very special moment for everyone involved. 0:20:28.380 --> 0:20:31.680 It was the first time that we made a big jump. 0:20:31.680 --> 0:20:35.399 I mean, there was obviously big attention and everyone wanted 0:20:35.670 --> 0:20:38.639 to witness it and be part of it, and you 0:20:38.640 --> 0:20:42.090 were right. I mean, we were starting beforehand and the 0:20:42.119 --> 0:20:44.940 wall and the Brandenburg Gate was in the back of 0:20:44.940 --> 0:20:50.460 the runners, going out in the direction west. West Berlin 0:20:50.460 --> 0:20:53.430 was big enough to hold the marathon race, but then 0:20:54.240 --> 0:20:57.450 after the wall came down on the 9th of November, 0:20:58.560 --> 0:21:04.290 very soon, runners from the east showed up and the 0:21:04.290 --> 0:21:08.280 British journalist, which was at that time very close to 0:21:08.280 --> 0:21:10.200 us, was calling up and saying, " Hey, you have got 0:21:10.200 --> 0:21:14.040 to do this next year. You have to run through 0:21:14.040 --> 0:21:17.490 east and west." And it sounded in a way easy, 0:21:17.490 --> 0:21:21.420 but it was not that easy because Berlin and Germany 0:21:21.420 --> 0:21:25.530 was not unified until a week after the race, so 0:21:25.680 --> 0:21:30.720 it was still a race through two cities or two 0:21:30.720 --> 0:21:34.169 countries in other words. So that was kind of very 0:21:36.510 --> 0:21:42.480 complicated to organize. Obviously, if you want to take a 0:21:42.480 --> 0:21:46.410 deeper dive into that subject, I would advise you to 0:21:46.410 --> 0:21:50.730 talk to my father because he was all in this, 0:21:51.330 --> 0:21:57.149 but more or less, in a nutshell, the organization back 0:21:57.150 --> 0:22:00.660 at that time was able to develop a new course which 0:22:00.960 --> 0:22:03.840 started into the west and now heading into the east, 0:22:04.020 --> 0:22:08.730 running through the Brandenburg Gate after three kilometers. And then 0:22:09.150 --> 0:22:12.179 there was a part... I mean, it was not like, " 0:22:12.510 --> 0:22:15.600 Okay. Berlin is now unified. Now, let's do 50- 50% of 0:22:15.600 --> 0:22:19.590 the course in the east and in the west." No. 0:22:19.590 --> 0:22:24.209 That did not really work out because we always had 0:22:24.210 --> 0:22:29.430 the ambition of having a competitive and fast course, so there 0:22:29.580 --> 0:22:34.440 was always something in the back of our minds. And 0:22:34.770 --> 0:22:38.700 at that time, if you go deeper into the east, 0:22:38.880 --> 0:22:43.590 so to say, somehow there are inclines. It goes uphill, 0:22:43.920 --> 0:22:48.000 so that's why we kind of circled around that, and then 0:22:48.359 --> 0:22:53.700 ran back into the west. So I would say maybe 0:22:53.700 --> 0:22:58.530 70% of the course is run in western territory and 0:22:58.530 --> 0:23:02.970 the other in the eastern territory. But back at these 0:23:02.970 --> 0:23:09.689 days, it was obviously interesting to see how over the 0:23:09.690 --> 0:23:13.530 years it also developed because I mean, Berlin was changing 0:23:14.640 --> 0:23:20.310 or buildings were built along the course, so the city 0:23:20.310 --> 0:23:26.670 landscape changed. But in the first year, which was a 0:23:26.670 --> 0:23:32.550 very special race, many of the resources that had been 0:23:32.550 --> 0:23:36.149 in place for the old marathon were still being used, 0:23:36.150 --> 0:23:40.320 so the finish line remained the same, and along the 0:23:40.320 --> 0:23:45.570 course, we made these changes. But it was, I mean, 0:23:45.750 --> 0:23:50.129 an oversubscribed race. A lot of people were coming. It had a big media 0:23:50.130 --> 0:23:56.550 impact, obviously. Everyone wanted to see this and it was 0:23:57.720 --> 0:24:00.780 for everyone involved a very special race, a special day. 0:24:01.830 --> 0:24:05.190 I'm sure it really was, and something that everyone will 0:24:05.190 --> 0:24:09.930 remember how it's changed and evolved over the last 50 0:24:09.930 --> 0:24:14.850 years. We can talk about the history especially of Berlin 0:24:14.850 --> 0:24:16.950 for a very long time, but I think a lot 0:24:16.950 --> 0:24:21.210 of people want to talk about this year. And from 0:24:21.210 --> 0:24:26.430 the elite perspective, this is the first time since 2014, 0:24:26.430 --> 0:24:28.109 as far as I know, you may correct me on 0:24:28.109 --> 0:24:32.970 this, that neither Eliud Kipchoge or Kenenisa Bekele are going 0:24:32.970 --> 0:24:36.090 to be in the race on the men's field. And 0:24:37.830 --> 0:24:40.590 I want to know what are you thinking because there are 0:24:40.590 --> 0:24:44.639 some really fantastic names out there in the elite field 0:24:44.640 --> 0:24:47.010 on both the men's and the women's who may not 0:24:47.010 --> 0:24:50.520 necessarily be the big names that everybody knows, but boy, 0:24:50.520 --> 0:24:53.220 that's some good times. So what are your thoughts on 0:24:53.220 --> 0:24:53.938 the elite field this year? 0:24:54.960 --> 0:24:59.040 I think it's always tough in an Olympic year to 0:24:59.430 --> 0:25:05.730 get these big names. I mean, as you were saying, 0:25:06.600 --> 0:25:11.580 neither Kipchoge nor Bekele are here which gives us a 0:25:11.580 --> 0:25:15.990 chance to build up possibly new faces. The new generation 0:25:16.230 --> 0:25:19.980 can now jump into the limelight. I mean, it is 0:25:20.190 --> 0:25:25.650 good that the marathoning business, so to say, has some 0:25:26.340 --> 0:25:31.770 duration, so athletes can come and compete at a high 0:25:31.770 --> 0:25:36.389 level for a long time, which allows the people and 0:25:36.390 --> 0:25:39.510 spectators and also the media to know them better. I 0:25:39.510 --> 0:25:45.060 mean, Kipchoge was winning our race five times, Kenenisa, two 0:25:45.060 --> 0:25:50.220 times, Haile Gebrselassie, four times, so these were some big 0:25:50.220 --> 0:25:54.449 names which were also recognizable by not only the runners 0:25:54.450 --> 0:25:57.689 coming to Berlin, taking part, but also after a couple 0:25:57.690 --> 0:26:03.899 of years, the normal Berliner. Obviously, not everyone, but a 0:26:03.900 --> 0:26:09.600 lot of them would be able to understand and recognize 0:26:09.630 --> 0:26:12.330