Run for Memory

On January 29th the sixth edition of Run for Mem, the race for remembrance organized by the Union of the Italian Jewish Communities in collaboration with the local Jewish community, will take place in Milan. It will cover a short and a longer route (4.8 and 12 km) covering various symbolic places from the Shoah Memorial to the ex-Hotel Regina, once Nazi headquarters, and from the Stolpersteine, the stumbling stones commemorating the deportees on the streets, to the Synagogue in via Guastalla.
The goal is to raise awareness of the meaning of some landmarks of a city that was awarded the gold medal for Resistance and represents a symbol of victory against Nazi fascism.
“The intention is to reaffirm the value of life that continues in spite of everything and in spite of all those that have tried to exterminate the Jews and other peoples throughout the centuries with genocides and massacres. Life goes on and the strength to survive, to live, must be passed on along with the courage to recount what happened, so that it may never happen again. And that is what we shall do involving the participation of citizenry of all ages, walking through a history-laden path. By running together, we will transmit the strong message of life”, declare UCEI and the Jewish Community of Milan.
Testimonial of the Run for Mem is the Israeli walker Shaul Ladany, racewalker, and two-time Olympian, who survived as a child Bergen Belsen extermination camp and in 1972 the massacre perpetrated by Palestinian terrorists at the Summer Olympics in Munich. At his side, there will be the former middle-distance runner Alberto Cova, Olympic champion of the 10,000m dash in LA ’84.
Ladany has been a constant presence of Run for Mem. He participated in its first edition, in January 2017, and since then has been a remarkable and enthusiastic ambassador of values, always ready to get involved despite his advancing age. In September, paying homage to his friends and colleagues killed in 1972 by the terrorists, he remarked that “his march is not over”.
The starting point of the Run For Mem, which will end for both itineraries in front of the synagogue in via della Guastalla, is Piazzale Edmond Safra in front of the Holocaust Memorial, at the entrance of which the giant inscription “Indifference” stands out, then fatal for many Italian Jews, had it engraved by Liliana Segre as a warning to the new generations.
The Run for Mem technical support organization is by Stramilano. The following have given their patronage to the event so far: Municipality of Milan, UGEI, Sochnut, CDEC, and CONI. The initiative is realized with the contribution of the World Jewish Congress and the European Jewish Congress, with the support of the Jewish Medical Association and CRI.
Participation is free but registration is required. Here is the link.