Running Around the Globe

Jun 09, 2010

runglobe2 For many Concordia students, traveling abroad is a pretty common practice. Running races while there, however, is not. That didn’t stop biology major Britney Barnett ’11, Valley City, N.D., who competed in races while on the Malta and the Mediterranean study abroad program.
    
Barnett, along with nine other students from Concordia and Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, spent a semester attending classes and doing service work through the University of Malta.

Eager to fuel her passion for running, Barnett decided to do more. In place of her usual spring training for Concordia’s track team, Barnett entered the Malta Half Marathon.

“I didn’t know what to expect when I registered for the race, but it was a pretty easy decision to make,” Barnett says. “I have always enjoyed running and this was my chance to participate in my first international competition.”

As it turned out, not only did Barnett run the half marathon, she clocked a personal record time of 1 hour, 34 minutes, 13 seconds and came in 120 out of 1,119 runners.

In addition to the half marathon, Barnett also competed in a 10-mile race in Malta as well as two smaller races while on spring break in Ireland.

Having the opportunity to run in a country such as Malta has had its advantages over Barnett’s usual training in Moorhead, one of the most obvious being the scenery.

“Running along the Mediterranean Sea is beautiful,” Barnett says. “Definitely something you cannot experience in Fargo-Moorhead.” 

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