Eric Mangeh Mbacah Takes 32nd Place Overall at the Boston Marathon

Mr. Eric Mangeh Mbacah (age 24) completed the Boston Marathon in 2:25:51 taking 32nd place overall, 30th place for his gender, and 25th place for his division. He averaged 5:34 per mile.

Mr. Justilin Foimi (age 23) completed the Boston Marathon in 2:27:58 taking 39th place overall, 36th place for his gender, and 29th place for his division. He averaged 5:39 per mile.

Miss. Immaculate Wirngo (age 23) completed the Boston Marathon in 2:58:47 taking 1059th place overall, 42nd place for her gender, and 37th place for her division. She averaged 6:49 per mile.

Mr. Januarius Bongkiyung (age 35) completed the Boston Marathon in 2:53:26 taking 598th place overall, 576th place for his gender, and 442th place for his division. He averaged 6:37 per mile.

There were 25283 runners in total who competed in the race: 14844 male and 10439 female.

Boston Marathon: A Real-Time Update!

Mr. Januarius Bongkiyung (age 35) reached the 10 km mark at 34min 15sec. His pace is currently 5min 30sec per mile. His predicted finish time is 2 hours 24 minutes 31 seconds.

Miss. Immaculate Wirngo (age 23) reached the 10 km mark at 40min 19sec. Her pace is currently 6min 29sec per mile. Her predicted finish time is 2 hours 50 minutes 7 seconds.

Mr. Eric Mangeh Mbacah (age 24) reached the 10 km at 32min 34sec. His pace is currently 5min 14sec per mile. His predicted finish time is 2 hours 17 minutes 25 seconds.

Mr. Justilin Foimi (age 23) reached the 10km mark at 32min 9sec. His current pace is 5min 10sec per mile. His predicted finish time is 2 hours 15 minutes 39 seconds.

Track the runners yourself!

Just enter their Bib Numbers:
1519 - Bongkiyung, Januarius
1527 - Foimi, Justilin
1124 - Mangeh Mbacha, Eric M.
12254 - Wirngo, Immaculate T.

Himalayan Institute Hosts Cameroonian Athletes Running In Boston Marathon

Honesdale, PA/ Dyberry Township — Four athletes from Cameroon in West Africa are being hosted by the Himalayan Institute from April 15 to 24. The athletes will run as part of the Elite Group in the Boston Marathon on April 21–the first time athletes from Cameroon will compete in the prestigious Marathon. The athletes from the Milano Kumbo Sports Academy in Kumbo, Cameroon have been training at the Institute’s main campus and surrounding roads in Dyberry Township after arriving from Cameroon on Tuesday.

Three men and one woman qualified for the Boston Marathon when they placed in the Big D Texas and Dallas White Rock marathons. The Institute sponsored two of the champion athletes in the Dallas White Rock Marathon in December. The Cameroon delegation includes Mr. Roland Kiven Mbenkum, Executive President, Milano Kumbo Sports Academy, Mr. Jean Claude Kammogne, National Coach for long distance and mountain races, and the team physician, Mr. Amougou Oyono. Institute representatives will accompany the delegation to Boston on April 19. The champion athletes running in the Boston Marathon are:

Mr. Januarius Bongkiyung (age 35): Took 1st place in the Big D Texas Marathon in April 2007 qualifying for the Boston Marathon. Took 1st place in 2006 and 2007 and 2nd place in 2008 in the Mt. Cameroon Race in the male group.

Miss Immaculate Wirngo (age 23): Took 5th place in the Big D Texas Marathon in April 2007 qualifying for the Boston Marathon. Took 1st place in the Mt. Cameroon Race in 2005 and 2006 in the female group.

Mr. Eric Mangeh Mbacah (age 24): Took 14th place in the Dallas White Rock Marathon in December 2007 qualifying for the Boston Marathon. Took 1st place in the 26 mile Njalla Quan Race in Cameroon.

Mr. Justilin Foimi (age 23): Took 40th place in the Dallas White Rock Marathon In December 2007 qualifying for the Boston Marathon. Took 2nd place in the Mount Cameroon relay team in 2007, and is the 10,000 meter Champion in Cameroon.

The Milano Kumbo Sports Academy is a leader in community sports and youth programs in Cameroon. The Academy was conceived and founded by Mbenkum, who is also President of the Kumbo High Court. Mbenkum had a vision to serve the community and underprivileged children by offering a constructive and empowering alternative to the petty crime and

unrest he observed in his judicial practice. “In the High Court, you see kids going to jail for small things…the Academy gives them a chance to use their natural talents to do big things. You can see that they want to do something” said
Mbenkum. “The runners have accomplished so much on their own, running Cameroon has lost its challenge for them. International races are the next step. With a lot of willpower and contributions from many directions, what seemed very far away is now very close as we head for Boston.” The Academy’s motto is “Helping young people to realize that sports can give them a future by helping to build self-esteem and community.” Operated entirely by volunteer support, the Academy specializes in running. Many of the children in Academy programs are displaced and orphaned, and have been adopted by Mr. Mbenkum and his family. They have taken them into their home to offer them a safe and healthy environment and education as they continue their training. Many have gone on to win races around the world.

“Our runners have excellent endurance” as evidenced by their wins in the 39 km international Mt. Cameroon “Race of Hope” (Elevation 14,000 ft.) “and other mountain races,” said national coach Kammogne. Athlete Mbacah expressed the sentiments of his fellow runners: “We’re extremely happy to realize our dream to take part in an international competition like the Boston Marathon, and meeting athletes from Kenya and other countries….we’re not afraid of anything.”

The delegation will return to Honesdale from Boston on April 22 for a few days of rest before returning to Cameroon.

For further reading, check out the article from AllAfrica.com!

Seeking a Runaway Success

They traveled more than 5,700 miles to run just over 26.

But for Januarius Bongkiyung, 35, Immaculate Wirngo, 23, Eric Mangeh Mbacah, 24, and Justilin Foimi, 23, crossing the finish line at the 112th Boston Marathon on Monday will be more than just an athletic feat — they’ll be the first runners from Kumbo, Cameroon, to compete in the famed race.

“Our dream was to at least take part in an international competition,” Ms. Wirngo said.

On Tuesday, the runners arrived in Honesdale at the Himalayan International Institute, which offered to host them and their supporters — team doctor Oyono Amougou, coach Jean Claude Kammogne and Roland Mbenkum, executive president of Milano Kumbo Sports Academy and president of the Kumbo High Court.

Read the full article from the Times Tribune here.

Himalayan Institute Helps Send Cameroon Runners to Boston Marathon

When Roland Mbekum, magistrate of the town of Kumbo in Cameroon and Executive President of Milanokumbo Sports Academy, wished to announce that four of his star runners would be competing in the Big D and White Rock marathons in Texas, he did so using a very modern forum: he posted the news on the Academy’s blog. The first response he received, however, was as old fashioned as they come.

Read this entire article by the Wayne Independent here

A True Empowerment Story from Sacred Link Jewelry

[Posted by Suzanne]

Exciting things are happening here at SLJ in Kumbo. Behind all the training and production, there rests a powerful desire among the recent Sacred Link Jewelry Graduates to become self-sufficient by creating viable economic opportunities for themselves. The concept of true empowerment is taking hold. Just consider this anecdote:

Recently Anita traveled to Douala on personal business. As she was recounting her experience to Shey Wongibe, I joined the conversation and noticed two new sets of jewelry laid out where they were working. It turned out that before Anita’s departure, the two women had decided that she would purchase some jewelry at a low cost in Douala with the intention of reselling it here in Kumbo at a profit.

Shey and Anita had pooled together what money they had, and Anita carefully chose the new jewelry based on several criteria which clearly reflect new business ideas presented in SLJ. Price was the primary concern, as the jewelry needed to be affordable here in Kumbo. The next criterion was quality. Since the introduction of quality control during the training course, this aspect of marketing and selling products has become second nature to the women. They have come to realize the value in providing a quality product to ensure customer satisfaction and secure a positive reputation for a steady customer base. (This is a novel concept in Kumbo, where products are typically of very poor quality by Western standards, and where people are accustomed to paying low prices for goods that they don’t expect to last.) The final consideration was to provide a unique product, not readily available in Kumbo. This too is an original marketing strategy for the region, since trends in this tight-knit community tend to emerge collectively. It’s common, for example, to see whole groups of women dressing alike right down to their jewelry. So these two SLJ graduates are looking to tap into a totally new market.

As I was conversing with these women, I was overwhelmed by the limitless possibilities that lie ahead for them. They have each internalized the idea that they themselves can create their own opportunities and become truly empowered.