Old Royalist with Lion Flag runs New York City Marathon to raise funds for charity
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Old Royalist Vajira Weerasekera flew from Sydney Australia and ran the world’s largest marathon held in New York City on Sunday, November 3. He was running to raise funds for a Charity (Shanthi Foundation towards building the first palliative care hospital in Sri Lanka). Vajira was joined by another Royalist from New York – Asanga Thotiwilage. While millions lined the streets of New York from the famous Verrazano Bridge on Staten Island to Central Park in Manhattan, both runners had special encouragement and support from members of the Royal College Alumni Group in New York (RCOBECF).
The local cheering squad consisting of RCOBECF’S past presidents and spouses started the morning by having ‘kiribath’ at the famous ‘Sigiri’ restaurant in New Jersey. Following the auspicious start, the group travelled to New York City in a SUV. They cheered the runners at different locations along the Route waving both Sri Lankan and Royal flags. The major highlight was Vajira proudly finishing the race carrying the Sri Lankan flag provided by Ambassador, Kshenuka Seneviratne, Sri Lanka’s permanent representative to the United Nations.
This year more than 50,000 runners participated in the 26.2 mile marathon with hundreds and thousands lining up the streets in the five boroughs of New York city.