The Jerusalem Night Run and Medical Research Keep Running! Part 1

By: 

Molly Livingstone

Molly Livingstone never did well at science, but that hasn’t stopped her from appreciating it. Here at the Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC) she is able to witness first-hand, the innovative breakthroughs changing the face of medicine, on a daily basis. Living in Israel, Molly has the opportunity of visiting the IMRIC labs, talking with the students and faculty about their latest research, and getting to know the people behind these great minds.

The first-ever Jerusalem Night Run made the Old City look young again. It was a quick transformation, I would even say too fast, but it took the ancient streets by surprise. Instead of the normal silent buzz around the archaic walls, they were alive with the pitter-patter of running feet, two-thousands to be exact.

For me personally, the night meant a change in the city's attitude to health, something that is very important to me as a new mother. While it is true that Israelis do have a healthier diet with lots of salads and hummus, the country has become more overweight in the last few years. The run brought awareness to health and healthy fun.

And it was so much fun. I joined the Hebrew University Running group, 'Someone to Run With', for the race and had a blast. The group was sponsored by the Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC) and we had the sweatshirts to prove it. It was incredible to run in a group of young students, many of which were from the institute itself. They proudly wore their sweatshirts while warming up and through the cold streets of Jerusalem. 

During the run we ran as small groups, each at their own pace. I was proud to finish the race in under an hour (there are a lot of hills in Jerusalem). After the race we all gathered together to cool down, share our experiences and find out our times. It was then we found out that one of our own was a winner of the race, Alexandra had placed 1^st in the women's division. If the group was proud before, we now had even more to celebrate.

This race is what we all hope will be one of many throughout the year. The students, who meet once a week to train together, hope to participate in the Jerusalem Marathon this March and help raise funds for medical research. The students want to support the research, since after all it is their research, their school and their opportunity to make a difference.

Check out these two videos: Roni, an IMRIC researcher who works in Dr. Amir Amedi's visual impairment Lab. She chose to run the race blindfolded, watch the video to learn why.

The second video is of Prof. Hagai Bergman, a pioneer in Parkinson's research; he is also an avid runner and has competed in several marathons. He ran this race with his wife and shares with us in this video the importance of running for your health and prevention.

There's still more to come so stay tuned for the next post!