I’ll admit — I’m a weeb. From cute anime such as SpyxFamily to action-packed anime like Jujutsu Kaisen, I’ve watched them all. Therefore, it’s no question that Japan has always been my top travel destination, yet I never found the right time to visit amidst my busy schedule.
So when my supervisor told me that he was sending me to Japan for a business trip, I was obviously over the moon. I eagerly packed my bags and was ready to visit Nagoya, a cosy city in Japan known for its museums and shopping streets. As fate would have it, I unexpectedly met my primary school BFF, Shannon, while I was on the trip as she was also in the same travel party.
It turns out that Shannon was there to participate in the Nagoya Women’s Marathon, an annual race for female runners. What started out as a simple business trip to Japan soon turned out to be a reunion with a bestie I’ve not seen in 14 years, and watching her complete her very first half marathon made me feel nostalgic, in all the good ways.
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Growing up in a girls’ school meant girl power — sisters over misters, fries over guys, and every other female empowerment phrase you can think of. It was through this supportive environment that Shannon and I met in primary school, and we instantly clicked like two peas in a pod.
We remained classmates for years, and one of my fondest memories included attending her 12th birthday party. We dolled up in pretty outfits and makeup, straightened our hair for the very first time, and strutted down an aisle as if we were Victoria Secret models. It was a party filled with giggles and sticky sweet lip gloss, just like every 12-year-old girl’s dream.
Unfortunately, iCloud backup wasn’t a thing back then. Heck, neither of us even owned a phone at that age, so it was impossible to retrieve photos from that day, no matter how hard I dug through my Facebook albums.
I guess some things remain best as a fond memory to look back on, even if we didn’t have physical proof of it anymore.
Despite being besties, Shannon and I were two different people. I was loud and extroverted, and would always get my pinafore and hair in a mess before the morning bell rang — courtesy of the monkey bars in our school playground.
Meanwhile, Shannon was more of the guai kid. She was always so small — I could pick her up easily, even at just 12 years old. With her white framed spectacles and soft spoken demeanour, she would ace all our class tests with ease.
Admittedly, in my rebellious age, I found myself rushing to copy her homework before every lesson instead of studying hard myself. It’s been 14 years since, but I still recall these moments with both fondness and embarrassment.
Shannon and I went to separate secondary schools after we graduated. Even with our Facebook messages to “meet up one day” and our longing cries of “I miss you!” on each others’ walls, we never saw each other again.
It sounds a little heartbreaking, but as Vitamin C sang in “Friends Forever” — “When we leave this year, we won’t be coming back. No more hanging out ’cause we’re on a different track.”
It was by some stroke of luck that I met Shannon again in Nagoya. Though I’ll have to confess — while many would think that reunions are filled with emotional hugs and conversations that flow endlessly, our reunion was nothing of that sort. Cut us some slack, but it has been a long 14 years after all.
Meeting Shannon felt a bit stiff and new, but not in a bad way.
First of all, I was surprised at how different Shannon was. I couldn’t believe that she was taller than me now, when she used to be almost a head shorter. Her white framed spectacles were long gone, together with her soft demeanour. Instead, I was looking at someone who exerted confidence in the way she carried herself, and spoke loudly and enthusiastically when she saw me.
Who is this? I felt myself growing a little shy and hesitant to be standing in front of her again, something that I rarely feel as an extrovert. It was as if we switched personalities after all these years.
After Shannon greeted me with a brief hug, I casually asked her about what she’s been doing since we last met. To my amazement, she told me that she was participating in the upcoming Nagoya Women’s Marathon and running her very first half marathon here.
You see, I joined netball in primary school, then went on to play in different teams throughout my years in secondary school, JC, and university. I was used to running and training vigorously at least three times a week.
On the other hand, Shannon wasn’t really the sporty kind when we were kids. “I thought that sports was very intimidating since it’s so competitive,” Shannon shared. “I had a fear of falling, especially since I was such a small and skinny child.”
So you can understand my utter shock when she told me that she was going to run this half marathon, and all the way in Japan too.
But Shannon went on to add that, because of her small frame, she decided to work out at the gym and grow her confidence. In secondary school, she broke out of her comfort zone and joined tennis, even moving onto rock climbing in university.
“Now, I go to the gym four times a week. I do both upper body and lower body workouts, and mix my routine with HIIT classes and yoga. But honestly? I don’t really run. I always felt that it was very boring and mentally draining,” Shannon confessed.
So why sign up for this half marathon then?
“I wanted to push myself. I think that I’m someone who has a very strong mentality, and I guess I wanted to prove it to myself in a way — that it’s possible for someone like me to do a 21km run, let alone train for it.”
NGL, it felt like I was seeing Shannon in a whole new light. It was both inspiring and refreshing to see her grow into a confident young woman who isn’t afraid to try new things. And in the spirit of “new things”, I was also excited to reconnect again throughout my time in Nagoya.
Shannon and I attended the Race Expo at Nagoya Dome, where we got to learn more about the Nagoya Women’s Marathon, discover a range of sportswear, and enjoy good food.
One booth that stood out to me was the New Balance exhibition, where visitors could leave messages of encouragement to the marathon runners and purchase exclusive Nagoya Marathon merchandise, ranging from tees and windbreakers to leggings and shoes.
New Balance’s slogan for the marathon was “Run Your Way”, a simple yet impactful phrase that meant anyone could be a runner.
Prior to coming to Nagoya, Shannon trained by running five to six times a week — a drastic jump from not running at all. She joined the New Balance Running Club, which offers both interval training and tempo running to maintain her pace.
“Running in a group motivates me. It makes me feel safe and not alone, on top of everyone helping each other, keeping track of how far we’ve covered and maintaining our pace.”
While Shannon isn’t aiming for a professional runner’s standard, it still didn’t deter her from wanting to set her own pace, staying positive and running her way.
While I’ve always been active, I was a little flustered to admit to Shannon that the furthest I’ve run was the basic 2.4km NAPFA test in school. I never saw the need to push myself further, and the thought of a 21km half marathon seemed way too scary.
But hearing her words inspired me — plus, it was 6 degrees in Nagoya. Running in this cooling weather as compared to the sweltering 33 degrees heat back in Singapore was ever so enticing. I wanted to give it a shot too.
So I joined Shannon in the New Balance Shake-Out Run, a short and casual 4km run for marathon runners to warm up their legs a day before the race. It went so much better than I thought it would. First of all, running in a jacket and yet not sweating profusely was a huge slay.
And secondly, this experience made me understand firsthand what Shannon meant — running with company was amazing and felt less difficult. It was such a joy to share this experience with other women, who encouraged each other with laughter and smiles.
The biggest bonus? Running past cherry blossoms in full bloom along the streets of Nagoya and aweing at their beauty — a view I would never get to see in our sunny Singapore.
Finally, the day of the marathon arrived. Eager to support Shannon for her very first half marathon, I headed down to Nagoya Dome, where the starting line was.
I was immediately greeted by a shocking view — around 18,000 women were crowded together at the starting line, all with the same passion to complete the marathon. Frankly speaking, I felt a fierce sense of pride, seeing how far women have come to pursue their personal goals in our society today.
At the starting line, Shannon was full of jitters. I wasn’t even running the race but I could feel it too — How would it be like to run 21km in the cold? What if she had a cramp halfway? Will she be able to hit her running goals?
All I could do at that moment was to send her off with a pat on the back and well wishes that she’ll be able to enjoy the run, no matter the outcome.
I’ve never had the opportunity to watch along the sidelines of a marathon before, even in Singapore, so this was an entirely new experience for me.
The locals were on a whole different level of support — I saw people decked in funny mascot costumes, donning cosplay and wigs, and holding up massive personalised signs and clappers. Children who were going on a stroll with their parents were jumping up and down, shouting “ganbatte!”, which translates to “do your best!” in Japanese, excitedly cheering the runners on.
Spurred on by their enthusiasm, I found myself cheering along with the crowd too. And after nearly two hours, I finally spotted Shannon approach the finish line.
With a rush of excitement, I ran to congratulate her for finishing the run, and she returned the same energy back to me with a tired but satisfied hug. It looked as if she couldn’t believe that she completed the marathon too, and her joy was undeniably infectious.
From my last impression of Shannon being that tiny, shy 12-year-old kid to watching her complete her first half marathon, there’s no words to describe the swell of admiration I felt for a friend I shared so many childhood memories with.
And to think, I was there to watch her through it all.
Before the marathon, Shannon set a personal goal for herself — to complete 21km under 2 hours and 10 minutes. She met her goals with flying colours, completing with an extraordinary timing of 1 hour and 56 minutes. Hey, what’s new — she’s been excelling since primary school after all.
On the day we parted ways to fly back to Singapore, I was stunned once again — Shannon had tears in her eyes at the airport. Through the experiences we shared with our new friends in Nagoya, both Shannon and I had felt a new friendship bond formed through shared feelings of passion and encouragement from the other marathon runners.
As I hopped on the plane back home, I realised that even after 14 years apart, Shannon and I aren’t so different after all. We both went on to different paths, but ultimately connected back to each other through the simple act of running our own ways.
Bringing back to Vitamin C’s iconic song once again, the chorus goes, “And as our lives change, come whatever, we will still be friends forever”.
The Nagoya Women’s Marathon is the world’s largest women’s marathon, and was held on 10 March 2024. Joining Shannon in the half marathon was Vanessa Lee, a New Balance and Team Singapore athlete, and Melissa Foo, a content creator and competitive runner, who completed the full marathon at 42km.
Vanessa completed the half marathon with a remarkable timing of 1 hour and 20 minutes, clinching 4th place overall.
And as for Melissa who completed the full marathon, she was also rewarded with an exclusively designed Tiffany & Co pendant and New Balance’s finisher tee.
Image courtesy of SportsPlus
Through watching the competitive runners and Shannon, it made me realise that no matter who you are, you can be a runner as long as you run. Running should never be an intimidating sport for both beginners and professionals.
Instead, the Nagoya Women’s Marathon is part of New Balance’s way to celebrate their “Run Your Way” campaign. This campaign emphasises on the uniqueness of every runner, no matter their pace, distance or experience.
Whether you’re running a half marathon, full marathon, or even a comfortable jog in the park, each one of us has our own running individuality. So it’s time to say goodbye to the stereotype that running is only for the elite athletes, and fully embrace the mental and physical benefits that running can offer all of us.
This post was brought to you by New Balance.
All images courtesy of the writer unless otherwise stated.
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