Campaigner to cover 250km

Kahira Rata-Olley after finishing the Rotorua Marathon, which was 208km shorter than the run she began this morning for the Running to Stop It campaign.

When Kahira Rata-Olley set off for a run this morning, she had a longer distance to cover than usual.

No stranger to long-distance runs, the 250km Mrs Olley will be covering over the next four days is a lot longer than the marathons she is used to.

"I have butterflies in my belly, but that's because I'm excited," she said.

"I don't know if my body will be saying the same thing when I reach 42km."

Mrs Olley took the first steps of the Running To Stop It campaign today in Rotorua, and hoped to run 58km a day until she reached Flaxmere on Saturday afternoon.

She said she chose to start the run today to coincide with White Ribbon Day, as she speaks out against domestic and sexual abuse.

Mrs Olley would not be running alone, with a six person support crew sticking with her for the 250km.

While she ran, Bay of Plenty Police and Child, Youth, and Family workers would also be participating in a relay from Rotorua to Taupo to show their support for her.

It wasn't just those running who were with Mrs Olley on her mission to spread awareness.
Since she started the campaign, Mrs Olley said she had received a flood of support, and had many people reach out to her with their own stories.

"Some of the stories I've heard ... I'm one of the lucky ones. This run is something that I'm physically doing, but I'm really doing it for them."

Mrs Olley said she was doing this to support the kaupapa, the community, and to save future generations.

Sometimes it was hard to speak out, but Mrs Olley said she was going to stand up against abusive behaviour.

"Speaking up saved my family," she said, "I'm not going to save the world, but I can save my family."

Mrs Olley had the idea for the run in March last year, while training for the Rotorua marathon.

"It came to me, just a vision," she said. "I can't explain it, it's just been given to me to do this run."

Arriving in Flaxmere, the place Mrs Olley grew up and faced years of abuse, would be a positive celebration.

"I'm not angry, I'm not bitter, I've accepted what happened with me, I've forgiven and I've healed."

Mrs Olley said she wanted to remove the stigma around Flaxmere. "Good things also come out of there, and I think I'm one of them."