Two Riverside runners will represent the city at the Sendai International Half Marathon in Japan on Saturday, May 11, continuing a sister city relationship that dates back to 1957—one of the oldest such partnerships in the world.
Tiffany Cheek and Joshua Estrada were selected as this year's representatives, with Theresa Hoag serving as coach.
The runners will arrive in Sendai on May 8 to participate in cultural activities before competing against approximately 8,000 international participants.
"Each year, the city of Sendai invites two runners who live, work or train in Riverside to participate in Sendai's half marathon," said Hoag, chair of the Sendai-Riverside Sister City Committee. "Sendai also invites runners from their other six sister cities in France, Mexico, Taiwan, China, South Korea and Dallas, Texas."
Hoag, who represented Riverside as a runner in the 2013 event before joining the committee, said Sendai provides significant support for the athletes.
"Sendai is just so generous," she said. "They pay for the hotel and the meals. The runners only need to pay for their airfare."
The committee is planning to reciprocate next year as the relationship reaches a milestone.
"We're hoping next year, the 70th anniversary of our relationship, we can get two runners either for the Citrus Heritage Run or for the Mission Run," Hoag said.
To support this year's participants, the committee will host a fundraiser titled A Midsummer Night's Dream on Thursday, May 1, at the Riverside Community Theatre. The event begins at 6 p.m. with food and prizes, followed by a 7:30 p.m. showtime.
