Runner wary but undeterred

Ms Meek was featured in the Stirling Times on April 9, speaking about her excitement in the lead up to the New York Marathon on November 4. She said more recently that the Boston attack had made her wary.

‘I was very devastated to hear the news about the bombing, and there’s no doubt that it made me think very hard about my run,’ she said.

‘It’s particularly significant because I’m raising for Amnesty International, who defend people who have no rights in this world, and it really brings home that people who perform acts of terror are taking people’s rights away from them.’

She said she would still complete the run, to make sure that her fundraising was not in vain.

Three people were killed and almost 200 injured at Boston’s annual marathon on April 16, when two bombs went off.

Curtin University’s strategic affairs analyst Alexey Muraviev said safety at future events would depend on what authorities could learn about the Boston bombers.

‘The principal challenge for the investigators of the Boston incident, as well as for organisers and those responsible for security at future events is to identify the profile of the perpetrators of these attacks,’ Mr Muraviev said.

It was important, he said, to understand the perpetrators’ motives and agenda.

‘Were they were driven by of violent jihad, or by a right wing, white supremacist neo-Nazi ideology ?’ he asked.

Dr Muraviev said it was crucial for spectators and participants to be on their guard at similar events.

‘Really be on alert. This is not something that comes and goes – it’s a permanent condition, unfortunately, and we simply have to learn how to live with it.’