PEACE RUN LAUNCHED AROUND THE WORLD
The Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run was launched in 70 countries this spring, bringing the Torch of Peace to the far corners of the globe.
In the U.S., runners left New York on April 19 on a four-month journey that was to carry them through almost all the 50 states.
A 9,500-mile Peace Run was held in Russia, with teams taking off from Moscow and travelling in four separate directions.
The eastern team covered some 3,700 miles, ending up at Chita in the far reaches of Siberia; the northern team went nearly 3,000 miles to Murmansk on the Arctic Ocean.
In the Balkans, runners passed through the various countries that emerged from the breakup of the former Yugoslavia: Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Slovenia and Macedonia.
Major events were held in Belgrade and, for the first time since the war, in Sarajevo. In Macedonia, President Kiro Gligorov held the Torch.
In Italy, runners carried the Peace Torch into St. Peter’s Square, where they were received by Cardinal Virgilio Noe on behalf of the Vatican.
Segments of' the Peace Run will continue to be run through the fall
Published in Anahata Nada, Volume 28, April-August 1997