One woman’s epic run: 7 marathons, 7 continents, 7 days
Mench Dizon clung to David Whyte’s words: “The antidote to exhaustion is wholeheartedness.” Jet-lagged and aching, she took another step in Cape Town toward the finish line and to the future she was fighting for.
Dizon, a tech entrepreneur passionate about education, made history as the first Filipina to complete both the World Marathon Majors and the grueling World Marathon Challenge.
In just five years, Dizon conquered all six World Marathon Majors: Boston, Tokyo, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York. Then she took the ultimate test: seven marathons, seven continents, seven days.
The race started in Antarctica’s Ultima Basecamp, then swept through Cape Town, Perth, Dubai, Madrid, Fortaleza, and finally, Miami. She ran over 295 kilometers averaging six hours and 13 minutes per marathon and traveled 60-plus hours, facing blistering cold at -25 degree Celsius and punishing heat at 33 C.
Beyond her achievements as an endurance athlete, Dizon is also a leader in the tech industry. Based in Manila and Singapore, the country head of Yield Guild Games (YGG) Pilipinas merges her passion for innovation with a commitment to social impact.
She wasn’t athletic in her youth, but Dizon ran her first marathon in Singapore in 2008 while two months pregnant. In 2010, she ran the CamSur marathon four months into her second pregnancy (Read “Fit moms working in IT: How they balance their jobs and roles at home,” Inquirer Lifestyle, 11/29/17).
Support group
Dizon leaned on family during the race by talking to her husband Gabby and their kids during the Perth night race. She would listen to her Bukas Palad playlist on laps she would assign for prayer, or stay engaged with a podcast.
In Madrid, she reached a breaking point: “I called Gabby and asked him to stay on the phone until I finished. I needed company on the last stretch of those uphills and downhills. He talked about the kids, work, and life. A few times, he just listened to my labored breathing.”
Gabby hates running but flew 18 hours to Miami to run the final 10K with his wife. Side by side, they talked about life, their kids, and a Huberman podcast on mastery.
“How you do one thing is how you do everything,” she said. At that moment, it wasn’t just a race, it was a reflection of their life together.
Doubts crept in before the race. “I have been preparing for a little over four months. I don’t feel ready,” she wrote in her LinkedIn post right before the event. “But maybe that’s just how it always is. What I am sure of is this: The attempt itself is what makes these challenges worthwhile, especially if it is for a meaningful cause worth pursuing. The run is a race for education.”
Unlocking doors
As a former scholar herself, Dizon knows what it’s like to have doors open through education. Now, she’s running to unlock those same doors for others. Her grueling challenge wasn’t just a personal feat; it was a mission. She embarked on the World Marathon Challenge to raise P7 million for the Digital Transformation Center at the Sisters of Mary School. The center will train students in programming, artificial intelligence, and Web3, equipping them with job-ready digital skills even without a university degree.
Brilliant but overlooked, these students just need access to digital skills to transform their futures. This initiative can help them change their lives, uplift their families, and shape their communities.
“Let’s give them a chance to have a shot at this. Join me on this Road 2 Seven, a journey to run seven marathons on seven continents in seven days to raise P7 million for education,” she said.
On her site, Road2Seven (road2seven.com), Dizon shares detailed accounts about her amazing experience. “People can also still contribute on the site. I’ll do a last push for donations until the end of February then turn over whatever amount I have raised to our long-term partners, Sisters of Mary. Apart from the donation, we have been working with the school for the ongoing digital upskilling of the students,” she said.
In her reflections, she admitted pessimism sometimes creeps in. How does she deal with defeatist thoughts? “Acknowledge that negativity is inevitable and will come and go during the race. The next step is to set it aside because the job needs to be done. To do that I focus on other things that are going well. Or I focus on my breathing to get out of my head.”
Focused training
Is there anything she would do differently? “I would prepare my nutrition plan with more detail and ensure I am well-nourished throughout the race,” said Dizon.
Interested in doing the World Marathon Challenge? She advised that while no qualifications are required, you must fund the trip, race and preparation. That means time on your feet and actively practicing your recovery protocol.
“My training was not super intense. The focused training started in August 2024, so five months. It was a gradual increase of mileage, with the most 3.5 hours on a weekend, back to back,” Dizon revealed. “I also did strength training. And lots of physio sessions to address the growing pains of an older body.”
Now that she has already accomplished the race of all races, what’s next? “In terms of relaxing, I need to sleep and eat well. It helps to do some physio work, too,” said Dizon. “I met an interesting, crazy bunch of people during the race and I would like to run with a few of them in races worldwide. It’s like having run friends from all over.”
She is also helping a friend with Project 1000 (project1000.run). “Her running and advocacy tie closely to mine so we are weaving our efforts together,” she said.
Dizon has crossed continents for these girls. With P1.19 million raised, the finish line is near, but the race isn’t over. Each peso fuels a student’s future.
Support Road2Seven today: road2seven.com
