Hamida Akter was heading toward Curzon Hall after class to catch the bus home. She noticed a crowd on the gymnasium grounds. Curious about why so many people were running, she asked someone and learned that the inter-hall sports competition was underway.

Students were doing laps for the five-kilometre run. She found out that although there were events for women, they didn’t include such long-distance races, the maximum was 400 metres. When she said she wanted to take part in a marathon, someone exclaimed, “You won’t be able to run that far!” Another added, “Women running a marathon? Won’t they just get dizzy and collapse?”

Jeba took up these remarks as a challenge. Born and raised in Dhaka, she had always been keen sports. She was on the divisional champion handball team while studying at Adamjee Cantonment College.