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The couple ran their first marathon togetherNew Yorksin 2010, a year after Gweneviere recovered from surgery to remove a meningioma tumor in her brain. In the eight years after that, Yasir and Gwen ran eight marathons together. In the summer of 2018, Gweneviere was diagnosed with a rare form of lung cancer that she couldnt beat.
To honor his wife and raise awareness of the disease that took her, Yasir runs. And runs. So far, hes traveled around the country to complete 46 marathons in 46 states, and you can join him to celebrate the NYC marathon as the 50 th .
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Yasir in New York with producer, actor, and TV host Nev Schulman.
The day before the TCS New York City MarathonNov 2you can celebrate and support the Foundation and running at a brunch at Papillon Bistro (tickets available here ) that features inspirational speakers including ultra runner Dean Karnazes, Story Corps founder Dave Isay, Womens Health Editor in Chief Liz Plosser, and lung cancer doctor Bradley Pua, M.D.
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More about the man behind "50 in 50"
Its hardly his first endurance event. Salem, a marketing director for Mens Health and the Hearst Mens Group, is also an accomplished competitive eaterhe participated in the Nathans Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest six times before retiring in 2018. And hes a speed-eating ultra-athlete, having won the Tour de Donut bicycle race several years in a row. (Thats a 36-mile road race with a doughnut-eating contest throughout.)
The man is ambitious. And there to support him through his zaniest competitions was Gweneviere. I love big projectsthings that kind of challenge meand I had to do something with my grief. So I thought, why dont I put those two things together?
Since he started 50-in-50 last year, hes discovered a few things, including how the travel is a lot more draining than the actual run itself, he says. But hes become a pro at scheduling (and sleeping on redeye flights).
The most challenging marathon wasnt the Dust Bowl Series in New Mexico, where he clocked a 3:57 PR. It was at Foys to Blacktail Trail marathon in Montana, which includes 2,800 feet of climbing in the first 5K alone, and 1,400 more after that. It was absolutely stunning, and I was really looking forward to the idea that they require you to carry bear sprayI kind of loved the feeling of dangerand I carried it in my hand the whole time. But, he says, I underestimated the difficulty of that course. Nobodys doing record times on that. So around mile 13, I called Delta and said, Im not going to make my flight this afternoon. (But what he wont mention is that he did win his division, and made it home on a later flight.)
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The innocent-looking trail belies the 5,000 feet of climbing you need to do in the Foys to Blacktail Trail Marathon in Montana.
How You Can Help
So far, hes raised $73,000 for the foundation, and wants to raise its profile higher. If you cant make it to the brunch event , you can donate to the Gweneviere Mann Foundation by going to gwenmann.org . There you can donate directly or sign up to join a marathon with Yasir as part of the 50-in-50 team. And follow Yasir on Instagram at @gwenfoundation ; #50in50.