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Berlin marathoner finds his saviour with help from social media

Philipp Pflieger reconnects with a Berlin Marathon spectator who preventing him from collapsing to the roads near the end of last Sunday's race

Philipp Pflieger
September 29, 2017
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Social media has helped reunite a German Olympian who was racing Berlin and a marathon spectator who offered roadside help.

Between 39-40K of last Sunday’s Berlin Marathon, on the major thoroughfare of Leipziger Strasse, Philipp Pflieger was exhausted and about to fall to the asphalt when a spectator came to his aid. It wasn’t the first instance of near-collapse either.

The medical team attended to Pflieger and brought him to a car to be taken away. (Pflieger did not finish the race.) The 30-year-old had no idea who the helper was so after the race, he put a call out on social media asking for the man to come forward so Pflieger could personally thank him. The footage was captured on television so the German runner was able to grab a screenshot of the two in the same frame.

“Two days after [the] Berlin Marathon I‘d like to find the man who helped me when I was struggling at 39/40K,” the marathoner with a 2:12:50 lifetime best posted on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. “Please share to help me find him.”

With the help of the Berlin Marathon team, who shared the Pflieger’s call out post to its own social media channels, the two were able to connect, a day later.

“We made it,” Pflieger posted to social media on Wednesday. “Clemens and I had the opportunity to talk for the first time since [the] Berlin Marathon and I could thank him for his help. Thank you guys.”

Pflieger set up Clemens with a care package including a sports kit as a thank you gesture.

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