Catherine Ndereba After Boston Announcement

Those who aren't a fan on our Facebook site WinCatherine Facebook Fan Page would have missed my post yesterday. It was a gorgeous day outside of Philadelphia and I was thinking about Catherine and how she must be feeling. I thought to myself, what does Catherine really love to do (besides running)? I realized I knew what to do so I called her at 11:30am and said "what are you doing today"? She replied "well, I'm going to the mall" and I said "well, I was just calling to ask you if you wanted me to take you to the mall"! I hadn't had a chance to see her since she got back and thought it would be a good day to catch up and I know how much she loves to shop; even if she's not buying she loves to walk around and look. So I picked her up and took her to the mall and we had a nice chat in the car. At the mall, she went about her shopping and I found a nice WiFi spot and caught up on some work, posted on the Facebook page (which if you aren't a fan you wouldn't have known!) and spent some time outside in the beautiful weather.

When Catherine returned 4 1/2 hours later I decided to read her some of the comments, prayers and wishes that everyone has been posting for her both on the blog and on Facebook. She was genuinely touched by everyone reaching out to her and I told her it would mean a lot to her fans if I could record her responses and post them online. She was all too pleased to do so and to be able to thank everyone directly so I stopped reading and when we got back to her house I filmed her as I read each and every post. She was so humbled by them all! I also asked her about her feelings on having to pull out of Boston and some other questions that people are wondering about so I am in the middle of downloading the material and as soon as I put it together I will post it online so you can all see it!

4/10/2010 Catherine Ndereba on the way to the Mall

Catherine's attitude towards this whole turn of events has only proven to me once again what a classy, humble lady she really is. Wait until you hear her outlook! I will get it up soon!

Sad to report: Catherine Ndereba has withdrawn from the Boston Marathon

Someone very recently asked me what my biggest disappointment was since beginning to work on WinCatherine: The Story of Wincatherine Nyambura Ndereba and at the time (only days ago) said that not raising the funds more quickly was the biggest disappointment; Until today. Today I can honestly say is the biggest disappointment so far; today is the day I learned that Catherine will not be able to run the Boston Marathon on April 19th. She has an injury to the Piriformis Muscle which connects the sacrum to the upper portion of the femur. (If you look on Wikipedia you’ll see that the muscle almost rests against the tailbone) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piriformis_muscle  She got the word from her doctor that he does not recommend she run Boston; he fears that due to the hilly nature of the Boston course she will aggravate the injury to the point where she may possibly do irreparable damage or face an even longer recovery time. For a 38 year old runner, that just isn’t an option. I just spoke with her doctor and he feels that the recovery should take anywhere from 4-6 weeks and that she will be able to do light running sooner.

I am so disappointed for Catherine; I can only imagine what it is like to train for something for so long only to have to withdraw due to injury. I wanted to meet with Catherine and interview her on camera but she was not ready for that. I wanted to capture her emotions at the time but I will talk to her about it on camera at another time. I know it will be important for me to discuss it with her on camera because I know a lot of athletes out there can relate to having an untimely injury. What she did say is that “it is quite frustrating; when you do a marathon you want to do your best” and she says she has missed a lot of speed work due to the injury. She was hoping to be cleared to run but when she got the news, she and her manager, Lisa, discussed everything and they both agree that it is not worth the risk. This comes as a big surprise as most people know that Catherine rarely is injured badly enough to miss a race. Sure, she’s had minor injuries but nothing that has caused her to withdraw from a major marathon event. She said she hasn’t been able to train properly since March 8th; which was a few weeks before she went to Portugal for the Lisbon Marathon. I know Catherine has a very high tolerance for pain so I wonder if that tolerance allowed her to go on longer than someone without such a high tolerance would have. She has been able to do light runs, but when she tries to speed up she can’t and long runs are out as well. Catherine has always talked openly about listening to her body and that being a crucial part of her success so this was a decision I am sure she did not take lightly!

So just as Catherine will have to adjust her training schedule due to this unexpected event, I will adjust as well. I am experiencing disappointment on a different level because I have been planning to film her in Boston and all the time and preparations that go along with that. But, that is what makes documentary interesting; you have to go with the flow so I am re-grouping and continuing to plan a great week of shooting. I have a lot of good interviews lined up so I’m looking forward to it. The good news is that Catherine may still attend the Boston Marathon and race week as a spectator! 

Catherine really put things into perspective, as she always does. She said: “Boston is every year; always next year”

Back in the USA

It is a cold, dreary, windy and very rainy day so I figured it would be a good day to catch Catherine at her home away from home in Norristown, PA. She arrived in the US last Friday after an exhausting week. Having just arrived home in Kenya on Tuesday the 23rd after the Lisbon Half Marathon, she had to turn around on Thursday and head to Philadelphia four days earlier than expected due to the impending British Airways strike. She arrived exhausted on Friday so I didn't want to call her then. I was away for the weekend and knew she would be busy catching up on chiropractor and massage appointments! So as I sat at my desk staring at the pouring rain, I decided to welcome her back. The first time I called, she was speaking to her friend Helen so I waited a few hours to call back. I gave them plenty of time because I know how the two of them can chat away especially without the time difference and being that Helen is in Maryland, they can now talk for free! When I called back she recognized the caller ID and picked up the phone with "Hello Stef". 

It was fun catching up and we talked about everything it seemed today! We talked about how quickly our kids are growing up; her daughter, Jane, will turn 13 in a few weeks while my oldest will graduate college just four days after that! Catherine recalled seeing photos of my children on Lisa's refrigerator when she first came to the United States in 1995. That was before she had Jane and my kids were only 4 & 7. We were just two mothers chatting about how time flies and how when we are young we only want to be older, and when we get older, we don't want to get any older! We talked about the rainy weather and how it prevented her from training today. She said she was bored and wished she could go to the mall. She invited me over for mokimo (you may recall seeing the photos from the last time she invited me back in November before Yokohama) and I was seriously thinking of blowing off the rest of the day and taking her to the mall, finding a WiFi spot and working from there. I was even willing to brave the weather and was excited because she promised to show me how to make the mokimo. Then it dawned on me. Sure, I could blow off work. I could go out in the rain. I could even find a WiFi spot and work remotely. But, my bubble burst when I remembered, oh yeah, I woke up with a sore throat and nasty cold and there was no way I was going to put myself anywhere near Catherine and risk her getting a cold! So, here I am back at work and she is still at home not wanting to swim her training today!

We talked about her race this weekend at the Crescent City Classic 10k in New Orleans and she said it had been 13 years since she has run there. She came to the US to train for the first time in 1995! It sounds like such a long time ago yet seems like just yesterday!

We talked about Boston and I was disappointed to learn that she will return home to Kenya after the marathon but she will be the maid of honor at her friend Jane Murage's wedding on April 24th so must get back. Jane even changed her wedding date in order to allow Catherine to be in the wedding because her original date conflicted with the Boston Marathon! You may recall Jane from the fundraising trailer; she also trains under Lisa Buster. She has been directly influenced and inspired by Catherine so it was very important to her that Catherine be at the wedding.

After 45 minutes I finally wished her a safe trip to New Orleans and she promised that when she gets back, and before she leaves for Boston, that we will go shopping and get the fresh ingredients needed for her to teach me how to make her famous mokimo!

WinCatherine on Rick's Running...

Rick's Running picked up the trailer today! His site is pretty cool; you can follow his journey to the 2010 London Marathon and his quest to run 2:45 here Rick's Running

Eliterunning.com writes about WinCatherine

I was very excited this morning to find an email from Bridget Montgomery, the editor of eliterunning.com letting me know that she became aware of  WinCatherine: The Story of WinCatherine Nyambura Ndereba and had posted an article about it on their site letting the running community know how they can support the film! You can read the awesome post here: eliterunning.com post

Eliterunning.com  focuses on women's elite distance running so I am thrilled that her post will reach such a targeted audience! 

I want to thank everyone who has been helping to promote the film! It's really amazing when a donation comes in from someone I don't personally know; no matter what the amount is, these are people who care enough to do what they can to help insure that the film will get finished and I truly appreciate it! If you haven't donated yet because you feel it won't be enough to help, please know that every bit helps!

I'm looking forward to talking to Catherine after Lisbon to see how her run was and how she's feeling for Boston!

Catherine Ndereba heads to Lisbon & WinCatherine getting noticed!

I can't believe how quickly the time is flying. It seems just yesterday that I was posting Catherine had started her spring marathon training! Now here we are already at the warm up race before the Boston Marathon! Catherine will run the Lisbon Half Marathon this weekend. She left today for the Sunday race so there should be plenty of time to adjust to the long flight and time change. Before I know it, she will be back here in Pennsylvania training! I surely hope we are finished with the snow for this year; I would hate to see Catherine turn around and run away from that!

Some good new about the film! We are starting to get recognized by blogs around the web and HOPEFULLY this will turn into donations so we can get back to editing! Check out these blog posts on WinCatherine.

RunBlogRun is a running blog by Larry Eder who is no stranger to writing about Athletics! (His other site, www.runningnetwork.com is a very popular and informative site as well) He posted a great piece asking the running community to help support the film; please check it out here: RunBlogRun article

RunTri.com is a cool site whose mission is to: "Inspire you to envision, strive for and achieve success that once seemed impossible"; they are a "non-profit resource providing practical training and racing advice to athletes with realistic priorities: Families, friends and work come first; Then, Be Epic." Read the article on WinCatherine and check out the site here: RunTri.com post

Yet another example of how quickly time is flying: it has been almost a year since we left for London and Kenya to film with Catherine! Since returning in June, the goal has been to raise the budget so we can take all the wonderful footage we shot and start to edit it. I never in a million years expected it would be so difficult to raise money for such a great project! I try to stay positive though and know that eventually I will contact the right people and organizations to get the film funded and back on its way! Please, if you can donate even a little, every bit helps (and if you need a tax deduction for your donation, we have a way you can do that too!) Also, if  you or your company would like to be a part of this film, please contact us directly at info@sparklinblueproductions.com. We have sponsorships available at all levels! Click here to DONATE NOW!

Update on Catherine Ndereba's schedule and....

Well, it looks like Catherine will not return to the US until the very end of the month. I wonder if the c-c-c-cold weather and snow had anything to do with her decision on where to run a warm up half marathon this year! She will be running in Lisbon on March 21st, the same day as the NYC Half Marathon that she has been so successful at in past years. Hopefully the weather in Lisbon will be a bit warmer than NY!

Meanwhile, another Ndereba will be in NYC for the Half Marathon! Catherine's younger brother, Samuel, will be running this year! You may be able to pick Samuel out in a crowd if you know Catherine; there is a VERY strong family resemblance between the two!

Catherine Ndereba (left) and brother Samuel Ndereba (right) flank Ryan Hall 

 Philadelphia Distance Run 2009

(In fact, if you've ever gone through the photos here and on our website www.wincatherine.com you'll notice a strong family resemblance among many of the Ndereba siblings!) Also running in the NYC Half Marathon this year are two other athletes from the Lisa Buster camp that train with Catherine in the US; Irene Limika and Moses Kigen Kipkosgei.

That is a popular weekend for races. It also happens to be the same weekend as a new event in Philadelphia this year: "World Water Day" 5k Run/Walk-A-Thon which benefits KSM whose mission is to provide clean drinking water to the Rift Valley area in Kenya.  You can check out that event here: http://ksmministries.com/ . We wish them the best of luck with this inaugural event for such a great cause!

Now a word about something I don't post about here very often. We are really struggling for donations to get WinCatherine completed. Even though we've shot a lot of footage, we are still a long way from being finished. We still have a LOT of film to edit and do not have the funds to put our editor back to work! Now we are planning to film Catherine in Boston for the Boston Marathon and need to raise some money very quickly in order to pay for that shoot. PLEASE consider a donation, no matter how small! You can donate via our website for a tax deduction at www.wincatherine.com/donate.html or if the tax deduction is not important to you, please donate directly to the film (we keep the entire amount of direct donations)

WinCatherine

c/o Sparklinblue Productions

533 Dogwood Drive

Maple Glen, PA  19002

If you can't help at this time, please suggest to others who may be able to!

Thank you for your help!

Checking in with Catherine 2/27/2010

I wanted to check in with Catherine to see how training was going for Boston and just to see how she was doing in general. I spoke to her Saturday evening after she had a good speed workout earlier in the day. I can always tell when she is relaxed and in good spirits because she laughs quite frequently! There are times when I call her and she has just finished a workout and has visitors arriving, or has to get ready for one of the many committments she has to attend and there is definitely a difference in her voice. Those are the times when she is in "work mode" and just like  most of us when we are working, we are more concentrated and "on". I love catching Catherine when she has time to relax and be at ease; it's like chatting with a girflriend at a slumber party! She admits to relishing the moments when she is able to take time for herself; she maintains an extremely busy schedule. 

 Catherine in her "garden" at her home outside Nairobi

She told me that it has been raining and I always joke with her that when it is raining it is great for her garden but not for training. I could visualize her face lighting up as she told me how well her crops are doing and especially the maize which she loves to use for cooking. She laughed when she told me she had "corn on the cob" for dinner that night! I asked her if when she is back in Norristown to train this year if she would give me some cooking lessons; I want to learn how to make some of the great Kenyan and Kikuyu dishes that use tons of fresh vegetables, beans and meats! She agreed and told me I would need to pay her; a big check; one with six figures and then she giggled for a bit. It was so cute! I told her I would pay her with hugs and she readily agreed! (if you scroll back to the November post before she left for Yokohama you will see photos of Catherine cooking her favorite dish, Mokimo, and all the fresh vegetables used! You'll also see photos of her relaxed and laughing which is exactly how I pictured her as she told me I would need to pay for her cooking lessons!)

After chatting for a bit more, I had to ask Catherine about the upcoming Boston Marathon. I know she has done several phone interviews already and I asked if she gets a lot of the same questions before each race: what does it mean to be back in , how is your training going, etc. Knowing that she has been aware of the enormous amount of snow we have been having this winter (her manager, Lisa, told me if Catherine sees any of the photos of the snow she may never come back!) and wanting to keep things light today, I simply asked her what her ideal weather for Boston would be. Here is her response:

"I don't want it cold, like freezing cold, and I don't want it extremely hot. Like back in 2004 it was hot and humid and I was full of cramps" She said "45 degrees (Farenheit) up to about 72 would be fine."  I told her I would place my order immediately!

Catherine Ndereba to return to Boston Marathon

  Boston 2005-Photo courtesy BAA

Catherine Ndereba will once again return to Boston to run the Boston Marathon on April 19, 2010. According to the John Hancock press release this morning “”Catherine the Great” needs no reintroduction to Boston as she has written the history books here as the only woman to ever win four times.”

2000 Photo courtesy BAA

It has been 5 years since her fourth title in Boston and I asked her if she is looking forward to running there again. She said it is a very tough course but she enjoys running there. She hopes it won’t be too cold! (In my opinion, she seems to do quite well regardless of how hot or cold it is! Her world record was set in Chicago when the starting temperature at race time was less than 40 degrees and her win in Osaka it was over 90 degrees!)

I’m exited that she’ll be running Boston because I went to Boston U and have only been back once since then so it will be nice to visit with friends while following Catherine. :)

The additional elite women’s field that was announced this morning includes last year’s winner Salina Kosgei (KEN), 2008 winner Dire Tune (ETH) and former winner Lidiya Grigoryeva (RUS). On the men’s side, Deriba Merga (ETH) and Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot will both be back. Merga stopped Cheruiyot’s three-in-a-row streak when he won last year. 

2001 Photo courtesy BAA

Catherine still hasn't decided which warm up half marathon she will run so I also don't know yet when she will return to her training home away from home in Norristown, PA. Right now, she is better off in the warm climate of Kenya during their summer than she would be here outside Philadelphia where we are experiencing the second snowstorm in a week to produce over 20" of snow! Stay warm, Catherine! 

2004 Photo courtesy BAA

Photo courtesy BAA

Prisons Cross Country Championships

The Kenya Prisons Cross Country cometition was held over the weekend in Ruiru which is just outside of Nairobi. It was held at the Prisons Staff Training College which is where all employees of the Prisons go to school and learn their jobs. (It also happens to be where Catherine met her husband, Anthony, and where her sister was when we filmed there last year. But that's getting off track!) Before the race I read several articles online that mentioned that Catherine was competing for this or that, one of those being the senior title. It was refreshing however to read today that at least one article got it right as to Catherine's intentions in the race. I know they got it right because I spoke to her last night after the race as she was relaxing with Anthony watching some news before going to sleep. The truth is, Catherine (as with many other elite athletes) does not run every race to win. When she is training for a big marathon, each race leading up to that has a purpose in her training plan. When I spoke with her she was very content with the run, especially given the fact that she has been fighting a nasty cold. (When we filmed her training run in Kenya, she was also battling a cold). I  know how hard it is to breathe with a cold without having to run, so I certainly can't imagine how it feels to run any distance with one! But this is something that athletes deal with all the time. Regardless of the cold or that she still came in 12th overall, Catherine was at the race as much to support her Prisons team as to get in a good training run!

As always, she spoke eloquently during her post race interviews and you can read what she had to say here (about half way down the page):  post race interview with Catherine Ndereba 

By the way, stay tuned for an announcement once Catherine signs paperwork for a spring marathon!

Catherine Ndereba Chief Guest at Awards Gala

Yet another example of Catherine's appeal to the youth; she was the Chief Guest at The Annual Sports and Clubs Awards at Strathmore University in Nairobi last Friday more...
Lucky students!  Also great for Catherine because she thrives on encouraging students of all ages; if she weren't a professional athlete she would have been a teacher and I'm sure as great a teacher as she is a runner!

2010 Training Begins

I finally spoke with Catherine; I hadn't spoken to her since the New Year because I knew how busy she was with the holidays. She reported that she enjoyed Christmas and was even able to spend time with Anthony after fulfilling her official Olympic Committee duties of receiving the Queen's Relay Baton at the airport in Nairobi. The trip to Mombasa to pass the Baton on to the President was only a day trip so she was back that evening. Even though she wasn't able to spend Christmas with her whole family as she usually does, she said she was able to see some family for New Years Eve and had a nice New Year!

I asked her about the football tournament she sponsored in Nyeri and she was very happy that the tournament was going well and that she would be appearing at the finals to watch and present the winner with a trophy!

I then asked how her running was going and how she is feeling and she is feeling great and reports that she just received her training program from her coach, Mostafa Nechchadi and that now it is time to get back to "serious" training! She always runs, but when she is not in training for a specific marathon she trains much easier and runs to stay fit and keep her body healthy. Now that we are approaching spring (and I know many of us can't wait for the cold to let up!), she will begin following her designated program to get ready for a spring marathon. Hopefully I'll be able to post just where she may be running soon!

So things are good back in Kenya with Catherine. Her daughter is back at boarding school and she is very happy to have her adorable (and I mean ADORABLE) neice, Ruth, back at her house while her sister, Anastasia, trains for her post as a prison guard. It is very sad for the children of women who take jobs with the prisons, police or military because they have to go off to college and train for six to nine months and then they have to be posted at a location where they continue their job training. During this time they rarely see their family and if they have young children it can be very difficult.

Ruth & Anastasia get some rare time togther at the Prison
Championships last May

Since Ruth's preschool is near Catherine's home, it is better for the child to stay with her while Anastasia is working several hours away. Like Catherine, Anastasia is a runner and being employed by the prisons will give her the opportunity to earn a living as well as run just as it does for her sister and other athletes in Kenya. Many people take for granted the time they are able to spend with their children but there are some places where the sacrifice is great for being able to have a career. You will see evidence of this with Catherine and her daughter Jane in the film when it is finished.

When I spoke to Catherine she was in great spirits and was sounding like a proud Aunt; she had just taken Ruth to her very first day of what she called "baby school"  and she was describing how she took a photo of Ruth from her cell phone and had made it her new screen saver/background! I asked her to send me a copy but she didn't know how and hopefully Anthony will help her do it so I can see! (Ruth is now 2 1/2 yrs old)

Catherine & Ruth 5/2009

Stay tuned for a post on where Catherine's next marathon will be.......

What Kenyan Runners Wear

Here's a fun blog entry from MessagefromMzungo

If you are moving through the highlands of Kenya and in particular the epicentre of long distance running, the Rift Valley Province, you quickly get familiar with the strong green and brown environment. The dirt roads and the beautiful scenery of trees and fields give the general impression of a naturally rich environment. Your eyes soon get used to the typical colours and shades of this extraordinary piece of nature.....read more here

Queen's Relay Baton passes through Kenya

The Queen's Relay Baton was received in Kenya on Christmas Day in Nairobi and was then flown to Mombasa where President Kibaki officially received it. On hand to present the Baton was Catherine Ndereba as well as 10,000m Commonwealth Games champion Lucy Kabuu and National Olympic Committee of Kenya (Nock) Chairman Kipchoge Keino. You can read about it here: Queen's Relay Baton handed over

 Photo courtesy The Standard