As the Week of Welcome drew to a close, students and community members geared up for one of the final events of the week: the Wildcats Run for Wellness 5K. The race began at 8 a.m. at the north entrance of the Chester E. Peters Recreational Complex on Saturday.
According to Megan Maransani, assistant director of fitness and wellness at the Recreational Complex, 112 participants, including students and Manhattan residents, came to run in the 5K race.
“We are excited that it has grown since last year and are glad that people are starting to recognize the coalition,” Maransani said.
The 5K race started out on Denison Avenue and turned onto Kimball Avenue past the football stadium, trailed down College Avenue and Claflin Road and back up Denison Avenue, where participants finished at the Recreational Complex.
Cash prizes were given to the top finishers in various age categories, and gift cards to local businesses were donated to raffle off at the event.
The first female to cross the finish line, Mckenzie Miller, freshman in animal sciences and industry, said she heard about the 5k race from her roommate.
“I came out just to have fun,” Miller said. “It was a good day to run because of the clouds, and it is cool.”
Miller said she ran track and field and cross-country in high school and has done a lot of 5Ks and 10Ks. She said she is looking forward to participating in more campus 5Ks throughout the upcoming school year.
Another top finisher, Caleb Engeman, freshman in open option, said he was able to achieve his goal of finishing in the top three.
“(It was) good, but I didn’t do as well as I wanted,” Engeman said. “I haven’t trained very much in the past few weeks.”
According to Maransani, the Wildcat Wellness Coalition is an up-and-coming organization promoting all aspects of wellness, including the physical, mental, emotional and social elements.
“Our mission is to promote wellness to the campus community and healthy lifestyles for especially our students, but then of course our faculty, staff and community,” Maransani said. “We want to do that by providing necessary information to the community of K-State on ways to achieve wellness through materials, websites or big events like the 5K.”
Maransani said she hopes the event continues to grow year after year.
