“I’ve been following his legs for a few years, we did Miami, Salon de Provence,” recalls Hamid Djellal, member of the P’tits Potos and the Sons of the Slaf. On Sunday 9 October, thanks to Thierry, he took part in his first home marathon in Metz. “I got injured during the Basse-Ham triathlon, since then I have been involved in muscle building but I barely run. When Thierry Philipps d’Illange asked me to be his pusher, I accepted, with pride, but I wasn’t really prepared. “
42 km in five hours
Thierry suffers from Charcot’s disease. Thanks to the blades, he has the opportunity to participate in competitions. “The challenge was daunting because for Metz there were only two of us, I had to push it over 42km. His Josette, his saddle, was damaged, we recovered it at the last minute ”. No time trial for the duo: “We wanted to go all the way, we did our marathon with music and we took the time to discuss. It took five hours to cross the finish line. “I ran under the colors of the P’tits Potos because Jérôme Davin, the president, had challenged me to run a marathon. For us it was above all a symbolic race: that of my 40th birthday but also that of reuniting with Thierry, who trusted me. I still had to push 150 kg over this distance! My goal: to make known associations, diseases but above all to give happiness to those who can no longer run. It was a privilege to live this moment with a man like Thierry. “
Berlin in sight
Next stop for the duo: the Thionville triathlon and why not the Berlin marathon. “Besides, I won’t do it alone anymore, the soul of Les P’tits Potos is also cohesion and mutual help, it’s an extraordinary experience to live. My mother had Charcot’s disease. In the running for a while, a medal is, at least not my thing anymore. Running with and for others is a great satisfaction. There is emotion and sharing. Thierry is a symbol for me, he is the pilot. I am only his legs. Congratulations to Hamid for perf and humility.
