Of the 55,000 plus runners who participated in the TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) New York (NY) City Marathon on Sunday, November 3, 2024, the five Zoroastrians who completed the distance of 26.219 miles (42.195 km) were felicitated by the Zoroastrian Association of Greater New York (ZAGNY) and the World Zarathushti Chamber of Commerce (WZCC — NY Chapter). "Only four percent of those who applied for the NYC Marathon were accepted,” noted a report by Edul Daver, erstwhile global president of WZCC.
The athletes — four males and one female — included Firdaus Dotiwala of Florida who ran his 24th NYC marathon, Fabian Katrak of New York who ran his fifth NYC marathon, and three Bombay athletes Meher Chinoy Jesia, Noshir Lala and Arzan Singpurwalla who participated for the first time in the NYC marathon.
Top, from l: Firdaus Dotiwala, Fabian Katrak, Meher Chinoy Jesia,
Noshir Lala, Arzan Singpurwalla;
above: ZAGNY members with marathoners at the New York Dar-e-Mehr
The felicitation accorded to the five Zoroastrians on November 1 commenced at the atash kebla (prayer room) where Ervads Pervez Patel and Jamshed Dastur recited a Tandorosti prayer (blessing for good health) for them. Subsequently ZAGNY president, Khursheed Navder, extended a warm welcome and spoke briefly on the history of the Arbab Rustam Guiv Dar-e-Mehr and the tri-state (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut) Zoroastrian community to the guests. WZCC — NY Chapter president, Natalie Gandhi, then gave an overview of their Chapter activities. ZAGNY member Jamshed Ghadiali narrated some interesting facts concerning marathons. At the Battle of Marathon in 490 BCE when the Athenians defeated the Persians, a runner covered the distance of 25 miles (40.2 km) from Marathon to Athens to share the good news with the Greeks. Having run 13 NYC Marathons and six Long Island half marathons, Ghadiali recalled the determination of a man running backwards, another on crutches, and the enjoyment of the rest, 99% of those who start being known to complete the race. ZAGNY member Nina Mistry looked forward to seeing more Zoroastrians participate in the NYC Marathon the next year.
Daver’s introductory remarks emphasized the importance of physical fitness and sports to develop character and noted an interesting correlation between sportsmanship and an entrepreneurial outlook. He then invited the four runners to join him on the dais (former ZAGNY member Dotiwala was unable to attend the event).
Residing in New York for the last seven years, Katrak who is principal, corporate strategy at IBM commented that the sense of accomplishment he experiences crossing the finish line is unmatched. In his words, "the NYC Marathon is addictive” for one experiences the best of the five boroughs (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island) and crowd support provides unparalleled energy. He urged every Zoroastrian to experience the marathon as an athlete, volunteer or spectator and gain inspiration to take up some form of physical activity to support a healthy lifestyle.
Running her first full marathon, Chinoy Jesia who is a partner of Union Press, stated holistic health in Zoroastrianism advocates a balanced lifestyle for overall well-being. On a global scale, Zoroastrians must work relentlessly to make sure they don’t just survive but thrive. Lala who was CFO (chief financial officer) of Leo Burnett until he retired and is currently engaged with UR CFO which provides virtual outsourced CFO services observed that as a small community with a rich heritage, we should stay cohesive and united wherever we might be in the world. Singpurwalla who is head of partnerships, WhatsApp for Business, META had run the Berlin Marathon in 2015 and hopes all bawas would wake up, lace up and hit the road. Start running, it will change your life, he recommended.
Nearly 50 ZAGNY members attended the event, interacted with the invitees and enjoyed a delicious Italian dinner spread coordinated by Pam Shroff and Zarine and Sam Shroff.