During the Pittsburgh Marathon on Sunday, May 5, two complete strangers become each other’s biggest supporter.
Laura Mazur (37) of New Bremen, Ohio and Jessica Robertson (30) of Pittsburgh were running in the marathon, but way behind everyone else.
It was Laura’s 12th marathon, and Jessica’s first, but the struggle was real for both of them, as they found themselves falling behind everyone else in the marathon.
Jessica shared with a local news outlet, “I thought to myself, I’m not going to make it. There’s literally no one else out here but me and I can’t do this by myself, I just can’t.”
Laura met Jessica around mile 14, when they were both ready to jump out of the race, sharing, “I told her I’d stay with her if she stayed with me. We stayed together the rest of the 26.2 miles.”
They were cheered on the whole way, regardless of holding up the rear of the race.
They crossed that finish like holding hands.
Daniel Heckert, who captured the incredible photo, said in a Facebook post, “These two ladies showed what it means to never quit.”