Read, Slade and Crotty conquer the New York City Marathon
Former All Blacks captain Kieran Read, midfielder Ryan Crotty and first five-eighth Colin Slade crossed the finish line in Central Park on Sunday 1 November (New York time), completing the 42.2km course as part of the Running for Rangatahi team. Running for Rangatahi is an initiative of the Crusaders, led through the club’s charitable arm, the Crusade with Heart Foundation, to support young people in Canterbury.
They ran alongside Crusaders Team Manager Aaron "Webby" Webb and Shane Thrower, a Christchurch teacher and business owner whose own story sits at the heart of the campaign.
Legends on the start line
Read needs little introduction. One of the great Number 8s of the professional era, he played 127 Tests for the All Blacks, captained the side 52 times and won the Rugby World Cup in 2011 and 2015.
Slade, a two-time Rugby World Cup winner with 21 Test caps, and Crotty, a Crusaders centurion who is now an assistant coach with the club, made up the rest of an All Blacks trio more used to running 80 minutes than 42 kilometres.
Before the race, Read admitted the team expected "42.2 kilometres of a bit of hurt", but said raising as much as possible for Te Tahi Youth would make every step worthwhile.
WATCH: Kieran Read opens up his trophy cabinet for a journey through his career
Shane's story
The campaign started with Shane Thrower. In 2003 he was hit from behind by a car while out training on his bike, leaving him with a traumatic brain injury, multiple broken bones and four days in a coma. He had to relearn how to walk and talk, and was told he would never play sport at a competitive level again.
More than 20 years on, he has completed 270km ultramarathons in Iceland and across African deserts. When Webb, one of his closest mates, was asked to run New York for Te Tahi Youth, Thrower was the first person he called. Read, Crotty and Slade soon followed.
Why Te Tahi Youth
Te Tahi Youth provides free medical, mental health, employment and social support services for young people aged 10 to 24 in Christchurch. It saw just over 1,700 young people across its services last year, but currently has to turn away more than 60% of those seeking its medical services.
Funds raised through Running for Rangatahi will help complete a new clinical facility in East Christchurch, with medical consultation rooms and dedicated spaces for social workers and counsellors.
As of the team's finish, the campaign had raised $109,315 towards its $120,000 goal.
About the New York City Marathon
The TCS New York City Marathon is one of the world's largest marathons and one of the Abbott World Marathon Majors. The course starts at Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island and passes through Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx before finishing in Central Park, Manhattan.
How to donate
Donations to Running for Rangatahi are still open via crusaders.co.nz
