Running a mile for GOAL in Lebanon

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The annual GOAL mile, which normally takes place on Christmas Day, underwent a format change this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Instead of the usual family-oriented events in places across the country, people were encouraged to run their own mile, according to public health guidelines, between Christmas Eve and St. Stephen’s Day.

This morning 120 members of the Irish-Polish Battalion completed the event in southern Lebanon, where they are deployed with UNIFIL.

Due to the pandemic, troops were unable to return home for Christmas.

Lt Col Fred O’Donovan said: “This is a Christmas day like no other as Covid-19 impacts the entire world.

“Members of Battalion 117 are not home this Christmas with our families as we continue our service here in South Lebanon. But we are delighted to do our GOAL Mile today and to support the vulnerable communities that GOAL supports in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America “.

The GOAL Mile event began in 1982 when then-president of the charity, Noel Carroll, asked local people and their families to run a mile at Phoenix Park on Christmas morning.

Last year, more than 150 Goal Mile events were held across the country.

Twenty members of an Irish family living in different countries around the world also walked a mile this morning.

The Flanagans, who are based in Ireland, Thailand, Australia, Germany and the United Kingdom, coordinated their mile to start at 10am Irish time.

Niamh Flanagan, who lives in Ireland, said doing the GOAL Mile was really special.

He said the family connected by zooming in as they traveled their miles together in their different time zones.

She was joined by her mother Máirín, 85, in Dublin, and her aunts. His brother Donal and his family in London also participated; Ronan and his family in Perth; Angela and her family in Cologne and her brother-in-law Peter Tarleton and his wife Nok in Chiang Mai, Thailand.



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