Eight years ago, Amalia Poliko came into the world in dramatic fashion.
A life-threatening complication during labour led to an emergency caesarean, and the team at Auckland Hospital had to act fast to stabilise both mum and baby.
Amalia’s dad, Gio Poliko, was later told that if they had arrived at surgery even 10 minutes later, he could have lost them both.
In the weeks and months that followed, Amalia faced further complications, including respiratory issues that saw her admitted to Starship Hospital multiple times in her first year of life.
But now, she is a strong and thriving big sister, and is fueling her dad’s perseverance as he prepares to run his first marathon – all in support of the hospital that helped save her.
Gio, from Thames, has signed up for the 2025 Auckland Marathon, taking place in November.
He is hoping to raise $4200 – $100 per kilometre – for Starship, and will be donating $100 every month leading up to the run.
“Amalia is literally our miracle baby,” he told The Profile. “I used to think a lot about the scenario of being late to the hospital or surgery, and the possibility of not having Amalia or both her and Paloma today. I have so much gratitude for the staff that supported us at Auckland and Starship hospitals. They truly are amazing people.”
In 2017, Amalia was born via emergency c-section due to a placental abruption at 41 weeks and four days.
In her first year of life, she had issues with recurrent bronchiolitis and silent reflux, potentially due to the trauma she experienced from the life-saving operation.
She was admitted to Starship “countless times”, Gio said, including one stay at the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit due to dangerously low oxygen levels.
“Amalia came into the world in pretty dramatic fashion, and as a first-time parent, there was a lot of uncertainty, helplessness, and frustration around not being able to do anything other than to trust the doctors and nurses at Starship,” Gio said. “The care she received there honestly meant so much. Seeing how she is now and the type of person she is becoming, Paloma and I are so grateful.”
Gratitude is a great motivator for Gio. That, alongside the support of his family and his desire to test his own limits, is what drives him to tackle the marathon.
“I’m definitely excited, and a bit nervous too. Before I started running, I’d never really run more than 2.5km nonstop, so 42.2km felt pretty out of reach at first,” he said. “But I guess that’s part of the reason why I wanted to do it. I’ve always leaned into things that were challenging as a way to build resilience.
“I think that doing things that truly challenge you, by choice, teaches you a lot about yourself, and helps you show up stronger in other areas of life too.”
Seeing Gio’s hard work has also encouraged Amalia to give the run a go – and she’s told her dad she wants to participate in the 2.2km Kids Marathon, held on the same day.
“Amalia definitely motivates me, not just with this but with everything. Both her and her little brother Alonzo do,” Gio said. “They’re always my why in life, and I learn so much from them.”
Gio is currently on top of the fundraising leaderboard for Team Starship – with $1,750 raised out of the $6,132 Starship has in total.
And with a few months left to train, Gio is passionate about extending that lead and inspiring others to support Starship’s work.
“Mentally, I’ve been trying to stay grounded in gratitude. I’ve got my health and the ability to move the way I currently do, and I know not everyone has that,” he said.
“So I feel a real responsibility to make the most of it, and to do something meaningful with it. And for me, that’s raising funds for Starship Hospital. They supported our daughter Amalia in her early years, and this is a small way I can give back.”
DETAILS: To donate, visit: aucklandmarathon2025.grassrootz.com/starship/gio-running-for-starship
BY KELLEY TANTAU
