Starting Saturday morning, runner Boas Kragtwijk has risen to an impressive challenge: running from Amsterdam to Kyiv to raise money for Ukraine.
Yep, ‘Ultra4Ukraine’ is a 2500-kilometre-long run passing through Berlin and Warsaw to ultimately reach Kyiv, reports Het Parool.
And Kragtwijk isn’t just running for sport, either. After riding through Ukraine on a motorbike years ago and witnessing the destruction caused by the annexation of Crimea, he was inspired to launch this “ultra run” in order to fund Ukraine. What a guy. 😮
More specifically, the donations will go to the Dutch Zeilen van Vrijheid Foundation, which renovates and then resells used ambulances in Ukraine.
No pain no gain?
This feat is definitely not for the faint-hearted. Ultrarunners are people who run for longer distances than marathons, usually within 24-hour periods.
How does he do it, you ask? Simply by staying in an almost meditative state and “not freaking out”, says Kragtwijk.
READ MORE | Riding to freedom: Amsterdam will donate bikes to Ukraine
The ultrarunner explains that his daily goal will be to run a gruelling 50 kilometres. To put things into perspective, that’s like jogging from Amsterdam to Utrecht. 😳
However, Kragtwijk points out that his body might also prefer a “zigzag pattern”, by alternating between 60 or 40 kilometres per day.
And his body’s preferences couldn’t be more important. Since he’ll be curled up in a caravan together with his cameraman and coach for about 50 nights during the trip, Kragtwijk prays that his leg nerve pain won’t get the better of him.
Kragtwijk’s challenge has clearly struck a chord with many of his supporters, who have even set up and donated to his cause via GoFundMe pages like the following:
Ultra4Ukraine – Ultrarun from Dam to Maydan https://t.co/19qLjrCQwI— Altes Pastorat Fella (@altespastorat) July 23, 2023
READ MORE | Dutch gov’t blocked from sending tanks to Ukraine by Switzerland
If he manages to pull it off (his expected arrival date is September 8), the entire Netherlands will surely be awestruck by this national hero. 🎉
What do you think of Kragtwijk’s project? Share your thoughts in the comments below!