On February 18, I wrote an article听in response to the news that the 2020 Tokyo Marathon had been canceled听for the general public over fears of the spread of the coronavirus. At the time, Japan, a country of over 120 million people, officially had around 500 active cases鈥攁 number that has remained relatively stable. (Three weeks later, on March 11, the World Health Organization listed the number of confirmed infections in Japan at 568.) Meanwhile, in China鈥檚 Hubei province, where the current outbreak began and where cases numbered in the tens of thousands, a government-mandated mass-quarantine听strategy had given rise to zany stories of听cooped-up runners .听
It all sounded exotic, mildly absurd, and very far away.
Things have changed. In the manner of the horror movie motif where some vague menace is perceptible in the distance, and then suddenly , COVID-19 has proliferated in the United States in recent days; as of Friday morning, the 鈥攗p from 70 at the start of this month. On Wednesday, the World Health Organization declared it a pandemic, as leaders around the world responded with varying degrees of alarm. Angela Merkel, the chancellor of Germany who is not typically known for hyperbole, coolly noted that it was conceivable that 听could become infected. After initially downplaying the severity of the threat, President Trump has now barred foreign nationals coming from 26 European countries from entering the United States. Meanwhile, the availability of COVID-19 tests in this country鈥攖o say nothing of ICU-unit beds鈥攔emains dramatically inadequate.听To quote the activist and , the monster is at our door.听
Needless to say, running events around the world have also been impacted, with new reports of race cancellations coming on a weekly (if not daily) basis. After major European marathons like Rome and Paris were either suspended or called off entirely, stateside races have followed suit. From high-profile track meets like the New Balance Indoor Nationals, to major road races like the NYC Half, to fringe DIY-type experiments like the Speed Project, the outbreak鈥檚 impact has been felt across the sport. On Friday morning, 听that this year鈥檚 Boston Marathon, which was originally scheduled for April 20, would be postponed to September 14. This marks听the first time in the race鈥檚 124-year history that it will not take place in April.听
Over the past weeks and months, I have been training for the Vienna Marathon, for which I had intended to use the NYC Half as a tune-up. Both races have now been canceled.听Like thousands of runners around the world, I have had to reconcile my genuine disappointment with the very obvious fact that being temporarily prevented from indulging in my bougie hobby听is a trivial sacrifice to make. Just how trivial will only be borne out in the coming days and weeks.听
Fortunately, racing and running are not the same thing. As a number of people have already observed in the ominously mono-themed Twittersphere, running is the optimal sport for a time when everyone is encouraged to avoid crowded, enclosed spaces whenever possible. Personally, I don鈥檛 need a global contagion to feel smug about not being a gym guy, but it鈥檚 mildly reassuring to know that I鈥檝e been practicing 听鈥渟ocial distancing,鈥 unprompted, every day for the last 20听years. (Of course, I don鈥檛 run to get away from people so much as to preserve my sanity, which, things being as they are, is a rather useful benefit as well.)听
Since I don鈥檛 know when I might听race again, I have been deliberating on whether there is any point in doing anything 鈥渉ard鈥 on the running front. To run at any pace means voluntarily subjecting yourself to some degree of discomfort, but pushing yourself in a workout usually听requires overriding the urge to do pretty much anything else. With everything in limbo, the question becomes: why 鈥渢rain鈥 when there鈥檚 nothing to train for?听
Yesterday, however, after spending the evening reading about an incipient global financial crisis, I grew restless and headed up to my local park to do a five-mile tempo in the rain. It was eerily mild for mid-March, and there weren鈥檛 many people out. About halfway through the workout, I was beset by a desire to stop, but managed to hang on. Afterwards, jogging home, I felt the familiar听rush鈥攖he satisfaction that comes from reaffirming your resilience to听no one but yourself, your ability to endure.