May El-Khalil
May El Khalil is the Founder and President of the Beirut Marathon Association. Beirut Marathon Association oversees the annual Beirut International Association, which has been held every autumn since 2003 and was accredited by the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) in 2009.
In 2014, the race and social movement attracted over 38,000 runners from 104 countries.
Born in Aley, Lebanon, Mrs. El Khalil spent much of her adult life in Nigeria after her marriage to business man Faysal El Khalil.
In Nigeria, Mrs. El Khalil became part of an international community and established the Lebanese Ladies in Nigeria, a non-governmental organization dedicated to providing assistance to the underprivileged members of Nigerian society and to promoting educational development by way of grants and scholarships. [1]
When Mrs. El Khalil returned to her mother country of Lebanon, she encountered inflamed religious divisions, political impasses and military
checkpoints on roads that were once open to all.
In 2001 she suffered a near-fatal accident that placed her in a coma. Mrs. El Khalil spent two years undergoing dozens of surgeries that enabled her to walk again. Determined to celebrate the gift of life and mobility, she founded the marathon to help mend divisions in Lebanon.
She wanted to shift the focus from that which divides the Lebanese people, and bring them together to celebrate that which they have in common—their love for exercise and their relationships with friends and family.
This mission became ever more important in the aftermath of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri’s assassination in February 2005, when the bustle of downtown Beirut came to a standstill, the Beirut Marathon Association organize the “United We Run” race that attracted 60,000 runners. Every year since each race that the Beirut Marathon Association organizes unites thousands of people, including national political leaders and royalty, all this in the world’s most turbulent region.
Mrs. El Khalil has been recognized for her work nationally and internationally; she has received the AIPS Power of Sport Award in Lausanne, and the Laureus World #Laureus Sport[2] Sports Academy Lifetime achievement award in Abu Dhabi. She has been decorated by Lebanese President Michel Suleiman with the National Order of the Cedar, and has been granted appreciation awards from the Lebanese Ministry of Tourism, The Brazil-Lebanon Chamber of Commerce, and the Lebanese Ministry of Youth and Sport. Mrs. El Khalil was also a Paul Harris Fellow of the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International for 2010 and 2011. In 2013 she was presented with an honorary Ph.D. from LAU (the Lebanese American University), [3]
in 2014 She was honoring by YWCA Lebanon on March 8 ( international Women’s day ),
Mrs. El Khalil spoke at the TED global conference in Edinburgh Scotland in 2013. There she shared the Beirut Marathon Association’s story with an international audience, and she explained that she founded the largest running event in the Middle East as an instrument of peace through sports. The assertion she made in her talk was that “peacemaking was not a sprint, but a marathon”, meaning that this kind of endeavor was a long race that requires commitment, endurance, and optimal belief in the ultimate goal. For May this optimum goal is peace and prosperity for her country, as she still runs her figurative Marathon towards that goal. To date May El Khalil’s TED talked has been viewed almost four million times on the official TED Youtube channel.
In 2014, May El Khalil was invited as a speaker at the European Innovation Convention on March 10. She was also invited by SEAL foundation as guest of Honor for their annual gala Dinner in New York. The Lebanese Franchise Association has chosen Mrs. El Khalil to be one of the four recipients of the “ Appreciation Award”. On July 22, 2014 she received the Fair Play and peace award by the Premio Fair Play Mecenate committee in Arezzo, Italy.
In addition to her work at the Beirut Marathon Association, Mrs. El Khalil is a mother of four children and grandmother to four grandchildren. She speaks at different Universities and organizations about the power of sport, perseverance, unity, and making the impossible dream of peace happen through running.
She is married to Faysal M. El-Khalil, who is presently the Chairman of the Seven-Up Bottling Company in Nigeria, Tanzania, Ghana and Kenya. Her brother in law is H.E. Mr. Anwar M. El-Khalil, member of the Lebanese Parliament since 1992 and several times Minister between 1992 and 2000.
References
- ↑ Witt, Debra (December 5, 2011). "The Uniter: May El Khalil" Runnersworld.com. Retrieved 2012-01-09
- ↑ "Awards 2011 / Sport for Good", laureus.com. Retrieved 2013-08-17.
- ↑ LAU (the Lebanese American University), "May El Khalil"
External links
- May El-Khalil at laureus.com
- May El-Khalil on the Lebanese American University website
- May El-Khalil at TED
- Faysal M. El-Khalil