The Ibiza Marathon and Ibiza 12K have formally presented its second edition in an event attended by Francisco Larrey, race director; Salvador Losa, Head of the Local Sports Department of Santa Eulària des Riu Town Council; Agustí Perea, Head of the Local Sports, Youth and Events Department of Ibiza Town Council; Fernando Gómez, island’s Head of the island’s Department of Sports and Youth; Vicent Torres ‘Benet’, Head of the island’s Department of Tourisim; y Fanny Tur Riera, Head of the island’s Department of Culture, Participation and Sports.
They have all emphasized the fact that the races have become large-scale events and that the participation in 2018 is higher than in 2017, with more than 2,000 registered runners this year, hence being the marathon and 12K the events with the highest number of participants in the island. In addition, they have stressed out their international nature. In particular, 66% of the runners who will take part in Ibiza Marathon come from abroad. As a matter of fact, 29 nationalities will be represented in the events on the 7th of April.
“These are important figures for an event which has just started. Even though there have only been two editions, it has already become a solid date in the events calendar of the island” said Vicent Torres. “The number of women taking part in the races is also relevant. They represent 41% of the total number of participants. The number of local participants is significant too. The marathon and 12K instil good values and the island wants to identify itself with them” added Fanny Tur.
The new circuit of the Ibiza Marathon has been explained in the event. This will start in the port of Ibiza and finish in the seafront promenade of Santa Eulària des Riu. The new route aims at improving the runner’s experience and, this year again, meets the requirements of RFEA (Royal Spanish Athletics Federation). “Starting by the sea is amazing. We hope the next marathon editions start in this area too” stated Agustín Perea.
As Francisco Larrey said: “The new circuit will go across four of the five towns in the town. The roads chosen have fewer cars and, therefore, the impact that such a big event might have in the city will be minimized.” Salvador Losa added: “We have been working hard to disseminate the event by means of, for example, distributing 9,000 leaflets or opening of a helpline for citizens who request information about the marathon.”
As for the elite runners who will take part in the marathon, PharisIrungu Kimani and Philip Tirop Lagat will take part in this 2018 edition. They are expected to compete to win the gold medal but they are also expected to improve last year’s course record in 02:19:01. The elite women list includes the Italian runner Daniela Viccari, who came in third in the first edition, and Natacha López from Valencia, who will also be raising awareness of cancer with her Reto42Kancer challenge, among others.
“We are very proud to host an international high-level event with so many participants as this one. Running is about overcoming your limitations and this philosophy can be applied to every aspect of our lives. We would like to encourage the citizens to go out and cheer on the runners next Saturday. I am sure they will love the atmosphere and they might become adepts too” said Fernando Gómez.
The Ibiza Marathon and Ibiza 12K have, therefore, become the big sports event of the island. Their organization team comprises around 300 people, who are working hard for the runners. They will provide refreshments every 2.5 kilometres from kilometre 20 on (approximately) and there will also be more than 30 cheering stations along the 42,000 metres of the race course.
Registrations for the Ibiza Marathon and Ibiza 12K will be open on the official website until 23:59 today, Thursday the 5th of April. The last bib numbers will be available at the Expo Ibiza Marathon on Friday from 10:00 to 20:00 and Saturday from 10:00 to 15:00 in the Palau de Congressos d’Eivissa. They will be subject to a late-registration fee: the marathon will cost EUR 90 and the 12 kilometre race will cost EUR 30.