In a remarkable act of solidarity and creativity, a group of Belarusian exiles living in Poland completed a 435-kilometer ultramarathon that traced the shape of Poland’s borders on the map. Their symbolic run, finished just days before Poland’s Independence Day on November 11, was both a tribute to their host country and a call for freedom in their own homeland.
The initiative, dubbed “Running for Freedom,” brought together a dozen Belarusian athletes who fled political repression after the 2020 protests against President Alexander Lukashenko’s regime. Using GPS trackers, they coordinated their route across multiple regions of Poland, ensuring that their combined paths would form an outline of the country when plotted digitally. The resulting map—a precise contour of Poland—has since gone viral on social media, hailed as a moving artistic and political statement.
According to the organizers, the 435 kilometers represented more than just physical endurance. “We wanted to express our gratitude to Poland for giving us shelter,” said one of the runners. “But we also wanted to remind everyone that freedom is something that must be defended—whether in Warsaw, Minsk, or anywhere else.” For many participants, the run was also a deeply personal journey, symbolizing the long road Belarusians still face in their struggle for democracy.
Poland has become a central hub for Belarusian dissidents and activists since 2020. Thousands of Belarusians, including journalists, students, and opposition leaders, have found refuge there following Lukashenko’s brutal crackdown. The Polish government has offered humanitarian visas, work permits, and support for exiled media outlets such as Belsat TV and Nexta. The relationship between the two nations, historically complex, has in recent years evolved into one of shared purpose—defending democratic values in the face of authoritarianism to the east.
The runners’ project was also carefully timed. Taking place in the days leading up to Poland’s Independence Day, it served as a reminder of the country’s own difficult path to sovereignty. By mapping Poland through physical effort, the exiles connected the Polish experience of regaining freedom in 1918 with Belarus’s current struggle for self-determination. “Every step we took was a step toward freedom,” said another participant. “For Poland, for Belarus, for everyone who believes that borders should not be walls but lines of solidarity.”
The 435-kilometer run concluded with a small ceremony in Warsaw, where the athletes presented a digital visualization of the map and laid flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Polish officials and members of the Belarusian diaspora attended the event, which blended athleticism, art, and political symbolism into a powerful message of unity.
As Poland celebrates its Independence Day, the Belarusian runners’ gesture stands as a poignant reminder that freedom is not inherited but earned—and that the spirit of independence transcends borders. In tracing the outline of Poland, they also traced the contours of hope, courage, and the enduring human desire to live in dignity and liberty.
