Woman finds place in race scene by leading blind runners

Gillian Chow first started running two years ago. Her motivation of breaking into the sport is similar to many. She became a runner not because she considered herself athletic, but because she needed something to clear her head.

But when the Barrie, Ont. runner began plotting a move to Hong Kong for the summer, things took a little twist. “Before I left, my mom showed me a TV documentary about guide runners and suggested that I try that,” says Chow. The idea stuck.

Chow started researching. She looked up “Guide running in Hong Kong”, found an article about a guide runner and asked the writer for the guide’s contact information. Chow reached her and found out that the guide runner happened to be the coach of a team called the Fearless Dragons. That’s a group of runners made up of both hearing and visually impaired runners. They train together despite their disabilities and when they cruise Hong Kong race courses, the deaf runners lead the blind. (The team also accepts guides like Chow who are not affected by either disability.)

So Chow got involved in the club. When she got to Hong Kong, she started focusing on becoming a guide for a race: The Town Health Fearless Dragon 10K, taking place early last June.

“It was a typical hot day in Hong Kong,” says Chow. “That was already a different experience for me, since I had never raced in weather above 20°C before.”  The two of them set out on the course. Another friend from the group came along with them making sure the way was clear at water stations and aid stations.

“I really tried to pay attention not only to how we ran as a pair but also to the emotional state of my running partner,” says Chow. But because the Fearless Dragons are known in the Hong Kong running community, Chow says that the crowd was incredibly supportive of the runners who take on the sport regardless of their limitations.

“All the cheering really encouraged me and my running partner,” she says. That said, Chow adds that her partner was by no means new to running having completed several 10K road races before. She was running mainly to support other runners with disabilities.

Chow has since returned to Ontario and is now living in Barrie. She can no longer lead her Hong Kong team members but is still looking to guide blind runners. So far Achilles Canada in Toronto looks to be the closest option however, living a ways north of the city, she hopes for something more within reach.

Seeing the Hong Kong runners not allowing their disabilities to stand in the way of their athletic capabilities, Chow was inspired. She ran her first half-marathon last fall and will run another one this summer raising $500 for the blind.