When ultrarunner Dion Leonard ran a marathon in China in 2016, he thought he was only running a race. He didn’t realize he would go home back to Edinburgh with his new best friend.

It was a seven-day 155-mile ultra marathon divided into six stages. He was on the second day of the race when a small dog appeared at his feet.

Being the competitive runner that he was, he thought the dog was a distraction and tried to ignore it.

But then this small dog did the unthinkable.

She began to run with Dion and even did her best to keep up with his pace, despite her very short legs.

“She began to grow on me, and for her, it was obvious that she fell in love with me at that first moment. I took care of her, fed her and made sure she was okay – mind you, it’s a race where you need to bring everything with you, food, shelter, the only thing you get at checkpoints is… water,” Dion shared.

Dion knew a bond had formed when he almost sacrificed his third place in the race when the runners had to jump in a river that’s 100 meters wide with a strong current. He was already halfway through the river, almost catching up to the first two runners when he heard barking from behind.

Dion turned around and found the dog on the bank, desperate to follow Dion but unable to cross the river.

Dion didn’t even have to think about it. He went back and took the dog in his arms and brought him across the river. Their friendship was now set for life.

That night, he named the dog, Gobi, and promised her that he was going to take her back to Edinburgh.

“Although I did not cross the finish line first, I felt I had won something even greater – a new outlook on life and a new friend that I planned on bringing home as soon as arrangements were made,” Dion remarked.

But while he was back in Edinburgh, making arrangements to send Gobi to the UK, she went missing. No one could find her.

Dion had no choice but to go back to China to look for her.

He landed in a town called Urumqi, which was so far from everything he knew in China. The language was one he doesn’t know and he didn’t know anyone in this town. But he was determined to look for Gobi.

He was, however, able to get help from a lady who volunteered to help him look for Gobi.

International media outlets learned about his story, which helped him raise funds for the search and even get the Chinese government involved.

Days later, they got a call from a family who said they might have found Gobi but wasn’t sure.

It was the best lead he got so far so Dion went to visit the family.

He realized the dog was his running partner when he arrived. He called Gobi, who heard his voice and ran up to him immediately. They were reunited!

Now, Gobi is living in the UK with Dion, as his best friend, roommate, and co-celebrity. Since their reunion, Dion has written a book on their story called “Finding Gobi” and have gone to different countries to talk about the experience.

Gobi has definitely been enjoying the celebrity life now.

Meet Dion and his running companion, Gobi, when you watch the video below.

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Source: The Dodo