It's a long way to come from Australia to run this Sunday's Tauranga Half Marathon but that is exactly what one family is doing.
After a one-night stay in Tauranga in 2013, Australian grandmother Susanna Brown was so taken with the Bay of Plenty that she vowed to return. This time she is bringing her daughter, son and the grandkids and they're all running the event.
"We were looking to find a memorable way to start our return trip to New Zealand," Brown said. "We were delighted to find the Tauranga Half Marathon coincided with our school holidays and immediately planned to include it. The event has distances to suit us all. It will give us a wonderful start to our much anticipated holiday in beautiful New Zealand."
Brown credits her daughter Elise Hull as the "inspiration for our family running". Elise was a participant in the 2013 Indigenous Marathon Project in Australia, an initiative organised by one of Australia's former Olympians, marathon runner Rob de Castella. The project aims to give Aboriginal young people with no sporting or running background the support and training to run a marathon, culminating in competing in the New York Marathon.
Elise completed the programme but to her immense disappointment injured her knee two weeks out from the New York event. She did complete the marathon, but being unable to run she walked the 42km in 7 hours instead. Elise has recovered and continues running over shorter distances and inspiring and encouraging others to run.
