Run Like A Girl (and represent with diversity)

Hello, 2022!

This year has certainly gotten off to a whirlwind start on a number of levels which I cannot wait to dive into in the coming weeks.

Today, I am sharing the good news with all of my readers: I have been selected as an Ambassador for Run Like A Girl Adventures, Inc (you can check them out online at www.runlikeagirl.ca). I am super excited to be a part of this group’s Street Ambassador Team for the year for a number of reasons.

While this is not the first time applying for ambassador roles, it is the first time that my application has been successful. After applying for ambassador roles with various running related entities from race ambassadors to running groups to products, I started to come to the conclusion that, despite my love for and knowledge of all things running and road racing, my geographical location was proving to be my greatest obstacle in bringing all of my gifts to the table.

I wrote (what I consider to be) stellar applications on what an ambassador role would mean for me and how I would be able to make a positive contribution to the each entity, only to be hit with one sobering fact: I reside in a jurisdiction outside of the scope that they were looking for. It was a bit peculiar, because as my fellow running friend Stephany pointed out, I am in a jurisdiction where the products are sold or I have already supported the race weekend or organization on some level.

When RLAG asked me why I applied and what I was hoping to see, I was brutally honest: I am a passionate runner and I want to see the Caribbean demographic featured in more roles such as these.

When you look at The Bahamas and other English speaking Caribbean countries, I imagine that it is not hard to see why we may be overlooked. But to anyone who dares to look closer, we have always been a small, but mighty nation, in sport generally and in running specifically, producing our own share of Olympic medalists. We have a solid base of endurance runners in our midst, persons who travel abroad multiple times a year to participate in international long distance running, triathlons and the like. So much so, that one would think that we would have more persons engaged in ambassador roles in running organizations and endurance sport products.

With the global population being required to adhere to social distancing, now is an excellent opportunity for organizations to look beyond the normal scope; to look at the jurisdictions which truly can produce excellent brand representation. We have embraced methods of how to race virtually, train virtually and exchange ideas across social media platforms. Now is the time to leverage the strengths of those once overlooked.

I may never know exactly what was said in my submission which prompted RLAG to give me the opportunity to represent their core values, but I am thankful that they saw me as a runner, a coach, an athlete and a writer and realized that those qualities transcend geographic lines.

I am looking forward to an outstanding year of learning and growth.

Coach Linda.