Widy Grego, marathon man with a big heart!

Dreadlocks flying into the wind, always smiling, you cannot miss 47 years old Widy Grego (46, Fr) on the bivouac. His joie de vivre and warm personality could not leave anyone cold. Indeed his joy and warmth are contagious as he greets people here and there, with words and sincere and delicate hugs.
On a previous edition of the MDS (it’s the third time he’s taking part), he had shared his thoughts on the race: “I come here to find joy amongst my fellow runners, because it’s a life not to be found anywhere else. I will be sad on the day we leave the bivouac, for this is our village. A village where the key words are solidarity, sharing and mutual understanding.”

An African soul

Even if it weren’t for his physical traits, Widy’s French passport didn’t make him forget his African roots. He comes from Guadeloupe, a French overseas department where people are of African descent. For generations, his family has been making “kassav”, a manioc based pancake after which the famous Guadeloupean band starring Jacob Desvarieux was named. Two years ago, Widy decided to move to Benin to share the “kassav science” and to help local populations to transform their manioc on site and thus become self sufficient foodwise.
A word on his dreadlocks? “They are the symbol of my African identity”, says he proudly.