Church of Scientology Moscow Honors Drug-Free Athletes
Athletes acknowledged for a stellar summer of drug prevention activities
The athletes who participated in the 5th annual Marathon for a Drug-Free Russia were honored August 20 at the Church of Scientology of Moscow.
Unlike a traditional 26-mile/42-km marathon that begins and ends in a single day, the Marathon for a Drug-Free Russia began June 22 and the athletes who participated ran from city to city throughout the summer on a drug prevention mission to reach as many youth as possible with the truth about drugs.
In every city and town they visited, the marathoners conducted drug education seminars and events, distributed The Truth About Drugs educational materials and involved the community in activities that forwarded the message that life is much more fun when lived drug-free.
At the event, guests watched a video of the highlights of this summer’s marathon, the athletes were acknowledged, and the plans for next year’s marathon were presented.
The Truth About Drugs initiative, supported by the Church of Scientology, reaches youth with the facts about drugs before they abuse them. By understanding what drugs are and what they do they are able to withstand peer pressure to experiment with drugs and make their own self-determined decisions to live drug-free.
Two other athletes were also acknowledged for their outstanding drug prevention work. Allen Khairullin and Pavel Grachev took off from Tatarstan in November 2012 and circled the globe by bicycle in the name of a drug-free world, returning to their starting point July 3, 2013. They spoke of their reason for carrying out this adventure and shared anecdotes and photographs of their amazing journey.
The Church of Scientology supports The Truth About Drugs initiative, one of the world’s largest nongovernmental drug education and prevention campaigns and makes these materials available free of charge to educators, law enforcement and community programs.
It has been conclusively proven that when young people are provided with the truth about drugs—factual information on what drugs are and what they do—usage rates drop commensurately.
The Church of Scientology has published a brochure, Scientology: How We Help—The Truth About Drugs, Creating a Drug-Free World, to meet requests for more information about the drug education and prevention initiative it supports. To learn more or read the brochure, visit the Scientology website.
Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard wrote, “The planet has hit a barrier which prevents any widespread social progress—drugs and other biochemical substances. These can put people into a condition which not only prohibits and destroys physical health but which can prevent any stable advancement in mental or spiritual well-being.”