2010 Pisa Marathon: the snow, the ice and the missing information

As all readers know, the 2010 Pisa Marathon has been cancelled. More than 1900 runners, participating to the whole marathon or to the half marathon did not have the chance to run on Sunday 9am in Piazza dei miracoli. After moving the schedule from May to December, the Pisa Marathon organizers found their way to get additional runners on this beautiful competition. Looking at the 2009 results and the vagary of the weather in the north of Italy and in general in Europe, it is obvious that it was both a risky proposition and it provides high rewards. In May 2009 less then 900 people completed the 2 events, while this year enrollment doubled. Even in our site, Marathon Ranking, the 2009 Pisa Marathon live experience is one of the top 5 read articles ever.
WHY HAS THE MARATHON BEEN CANCELLED?
Reading the Pisa Marathon site, reasons do not not seem clear. Obviously, there was the snow. On Friday 17th, it was snowing in the whole North of Italy, including Pisa. On Saturday however, situation looked better, and it was likely that the following day the competition would have been confirmed.  The first decision that the organization has proposed was running the Marathon on a 7km circuit, all runners received a text message about it in the afternoon. However, at the end of the day, it was obvious that the big ice in Piazza dei Miracoli did not allow to run safely an international competition.  
WHAT NEXT?

It has been confirmed on the Pisa Marathon site, that all runners participating to the 2010 edition, will automatically be enrolled to the next edition, without paying any additional fees. Clearly, it is still necessary to confirm your intention to participate on the Pisa marathon 2011 website. The next edition of the Pisa Marathon will be held on the 18th of December 2011, according to the Italian Athletic Federation schedule.
OUR ADVICE
If you have trained for the Pisa Marathon and you would like to run after Christmas, our advice is to enroll to the 8th edition of the Brembo Marathon, which is clearly an unique race, organized by runners for runners. On the 6th of January 2011, you can come with a Ryanair flight to Orio al Serio and join this wonderful marathon at Roncola di Treviolo, Bergamo. As of the 24th of December, 115 runners enrolled to the Marathon (129 to the half marathon).

2010 Italian Marathon final ranking

Since we are closed to the end of the year, it is time to update the ranking with the list of all Italian IAAF Marathons, sorted by the number of Participants who completed the competition during 2010. This ranking does not express any judgment on the best organized marathons in the country, or the quality of the competition. The aim of the updated ranking is only to inform foreign runners about the numbers of participants that completed the Italian marathons, to give the best feeling on their size. Update time: December 31th 2010.


Below you can find the ranking for the top Italian marathons, based on numbers of people arrived at the finished line. Please note that the ranking refers only to the most recent marathon, while former edition might have got higher participations. 

TOP TEN:

1. Rome Marathon: arrived 10995 (Mar 21 2010, Ranking Rome Marathon 2010)

2. Florence Marathon: arrived 7758 (Nov 28 2010, Ranking Florence Marathon 2010)

3. Venice Marathon: arrived 6258 (Oct 25 2010, Ranking Venice Marathon 2010)

4. Milan City Marathon: arrived 3435 (Apr 11 2010, Ranking Milan Marathon 2010)

5. Treviso Marathon: arrived 2210 (Mar 27 2010, Ranking Treviso Marathon 2010)

6. Reggio Emilia: arrived 2105 (Dec 12 2010, Ranking Reggio Emilia Marathon 2010)

7. Turin Marathon: arrived 2090 (Nov 11 2010, Ranking Turin Marathon 2010)

8. Padua Marathon: arrived 1880 (Apr 25 2010, Ranking Padua Marathon 2010)

9. Verona Marathon: arrived 1710 (Feb 21 2010, Ranking Verona Marathon 2010)

10: Lake Garda Marathon: arrived 1388 (Oct 10 2010, Ranking Lake Garda Marathon 2010)

TOP 20:
11. Carpi Ferrari Italian Marathon: arrived 881 (Oct 10 2010, Ranking Ferrari Marathon 2010)
12. Colle Marathon, from Barchi to Fano: arrived 804 (May 2 2010, Collemar Marathon ranking)

13. Lucca Marathon: arrived 699 (Oct 25 2010, Ranking Lucca Marathon 2010)

14. Custoza Marathon: arrived 678 (May 10 2010, Ranking Custoza Marathon 2010)

15. Trieste Marathon: arrived 614 (May 2 2010, Ranking Trieste Marathon 2010)
16. Placentia Marathon: arrived 546 (Mar 7 2010, Placentia Marathon 2010)
17. Frederick II: arrived 485 (Mar 7 2010, Ranking Frederick II 2010)

18. Brescia Marathon: arrived 477 (Mar 13 2010, Ranking Brescia Marathon 2010)

19. Coast to Coast Marathon: arrived 472 (Dec 19 2010, Ranking Amalfi Marathon 2010)

20. Verdi Marathon: Salsomaggiore Parma: arrived 428 (Feb 28 2010, Verdi Marathon 2010)

TOP 30:
21. South Tirol Marathon: arrived 424 (Oct 3 2010, ST Marathon 2010)

22. Lamone's Marathon: arrived 422 (Apr 5 2009, source)

23. Bari Marathon: arrived 404 (Nov 21 2010, Bari Marathon 2010)
24. Vercelli Marathon: arrived 388 (May 1 2010, Rice Marathon 2010)
25. Naples Marathon: arrived 362 (Apr 18 2010, Naples Marathon 2010)

26. Piceno Marathon: arrived 333 (May 16 2010, Ranking Piceno Marathon 2010)

27. Salento Marathon, Arrived 267 (Feb 7 2010, Salento Marathon 2010) 

28. Milano Pavia Marathon: arrived 265 (Nov 14 2010, Ranking 2010)

29. Maratona sul Brembo: arrived 242 (Jan 6 2010, Brembo Marathon Ranking 2010)

30. Latina Marathon: arrived 235 (Dec 5 2010, Latina Marathon 2010)

TOP 50:
31. Livorno Marathon: arrived 230 (Nov 14 2010, Livorno Marathon 2010 Ranking)

32. San Silvestro Marathon, Calderara di Reno, BO: arrived 230 (Dec 31 2010, ranking)

33. Brianza Marathon: arrived 221 (Mar 21 2010, Brianza Marathon 2010)
34. Palermo Marathon: arrived 189 (Nov 21 2010, Ranking Brianza Marathon 2010)

35. Wine Cities Marathon, Buttrio: arrived 155 (Oct 3 2010, Wine Cities 2010)

36. Bergamo Marathon: arrived 147 (Sep 26 2010, Bergamo Marathon Ranking 2010)

37. San Benedetto Sable Marathon: arrived 127 (Feb 14 2010, Sable Marathon 2010)

38. Messina Marathon: arrived 115 (Apr 25 2010, Messina Marathon 2010 Ranking)

39. Adriatic Marathon: arrived 109 (March 28 2010, source: championchip)
40. Syracuse Marathon: arrived 99 (Feb 21 2010, Syracuse Ranking 2010)
41. Gargano Marathon: arrived 97 (June 18 2010, Gargano 2010)
42. Hybla Barocco Marathon: arrived 95 (Jan 24 2010, Hybla Marathon 2010)
43. Trasimeno Lake Marathon: arrived 92 (Mar 7 2010, Trasimeno 2010)
44. Reggio Calabria Marathon: arrived 72 (Nov 28 2010, Ranking 2010)

CANCELLED IN 2010:

Ferrara Marathon: it was the 17th largest in 2009. Will be organized in March 2011
Pisa Marathon: it was top 20 in 2009, but it has been cancelled due to the heavy snow in Pisa during the week-end of the race
Ravenna Marathon: it was top 30 in 2009

Jesolo Night Marathon: it was top 30 in 2009

Alessandria Marengo Marathon: it was top 50 in 2009

42000 steps in Valsusa: postponed in March 2011, it was top 50 in 2009

DISCONTINUED:

Lecco Marathon: arrived 80 (March 8 2009)

More than 2000 runners at the 15th Reggio Emilia Marathon

More than 2000 runners have already enrolled to the 15th edition of the Reggio Emilia Marathon. Among them, there are athletes from Austria, Switzerland, Croatia, Greece, Slovenia, Morocco, Kenya,  Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam.
Although few runners from abroad are coming to this event, the best organized Marathon in Italy is pretty much an Italian event. More than half of the athletes are coming from 2 regions only: 550 runners from Emilia Romagna, 500 from Lombardy.

To learn more about this fantastic event, readers can check the 2009 Reggio Emilia Marathon live experience.

Links to tracking, live and results at the 27th Florence Marathon

Out of the 10,400 enrolled, more than 10,000 runners have participated today to the 27th edition of the Florence Marathon, on the raining Florence. Assuming that you have not run today, if you want to see the key runners, you can watch live on Internet, since it is broadcast by the Italian Television. It has 55 second-delay compared to the real live.

If you want to track live all participants results, you can use the link to the Florence Marathon live tracking. Finally, at the following link you can find the 27th Florence Marathon results.
The 22-year old Ethiopian Tadese Aredo Tolesa won in 2h12:40.

Summary statistics and results at Turin Marathon, Livorno Marathon and Milano Pavia Marathon on 11.14.2010

Three marathons have been run this 11.14.10 week-end in Italy. The 24^th edition of the Turin Marathon, with live direct in TV, Satellite and internet delivered the highest performance. The Italian Ruggero Pertile waited 1h45 minutes before attaching the key Kenian and Ethiopian runners and completed the Turin Marathon in 2h10:58 minutes. The competition is still running, the Rai journalist implied that more than 2500 started the marathon. 2087 runners concluded the Turin Marathon, which is in line with the 2009 result in April 2009 (Milan and Turin have swapped the spot for the marathon in 2009).

At the Livorno Marathon, the Kenian Eric Kipkmei won the competition in 2h17:10.On the top 75 runners, 13 were international, confirming that Tuscany and Liguria represent a good combination of running and touristical activities. As background reading, Livorno is a port city on the Ligurian sea on the western edge of Tuscany. 224 runners completed the marathon, with around 300 enrolled (and 1000 participating to the half Marathon).

Finally, there was also the traditional Milano Pavia 33km competition, which included a full marathon. More than 260 runners arrived at the finish line after 26.2 miles. This is really a local race which is growing year after year becoming one of the top 30 in Italy. Stefano Ripamonti from CTL3 Atletics won in 2h32. Kenji Takahashi from Japan was the only international runner arriving in the top 100 (he finished in 2h58 at the 24th position). 265 runners completed the marathon.

Since few readers are interested to see the full results, you can find below the 11.14.2010 rankings.

Turin Marathon 11.14.2010 Ranking

Livorno Marathon 11.14.2010 Ranking

Milano Pavia Marathon 11.14.2010 Ranking

24th Turin Marathon live on Internet

At 9:15 am this Sunday November 14th, more than 4000 runners will take part to the 24th edition of the Turin Marathon, silver IAAF label and one of the top 5 in Italy. If you are not one of the participants, you still have a chance at least to see what you missed, by watching the internet through the Broadcasting from the Italian Television. Turin Marathon will be available in at the Turin Marathon Live Internet link. Good luck to all Runners.

Garmin track on top 10 Italian Marathons

Below you can find the Garmin links to the top 10 Italian Marathon, that has been requested by several readers. Please note that few marathons (eg. Florence) have changed their tracks.

1. 2010 Rome Marathon Garmin Track
2. 2009 Florence Marathon Garmin Track, will change in 2010.
3. 2010 Venice Marathon Garmin Track, might change in 2011.
4. 2010 Milan City Marathon Garmin Track
5. 2010 Treviso Marathon Garmin Track: negative elevation!
6. 2009 Reggio Emilia Marathon Garmin Track
7. 2010 Padua Marathon Garmin Track: very flat race, might change in 2011.
8. 2010 Verona Marathon Garmin Track
9. 2010 Turin Marathon Garmin Track
10. 2010 Lake Garda Marathon Garmin Track
11. 2010 Carpi Marathon Garmin Track, negative elevation!

2010 Venice Marathon: few statistics

Number of Foreign runners arrived at the 25th Venice Marathon 

As already mentioned on former post, 6260 runners arrived at the finish line of the 25th Venice Marathon. With 7000-bibs constraint, this represents a pretty good results for this incredibly oversubscribed marathon. Out of the 6260 runners, 54 countries have been represented in Venice on October 24th 2010. 78.4% of runners were Italians, while 6.2% where French, 3.9% British and 1.6% Germans. As curiosity, less then 100 runners from Unites States have crossed the finish line. This number is expected to grow in the next few years. 9 Kenians run for 26.2 miles, all in the top 30. In term of performance, 21 athletes completed the Venice Marathon in less than 2h30, 306 in less than 3h00, 675 in less than 3h15, 1490 in less than 3h30, 3491 in less than 4h.
Contrary to the original expectations, the race did not arrive in Piazza San Marco, due to weather condition. The weather was excellent for runners, with 13 degree Celtius, but due to acqua alta in Piazza San Marco, the race has been changed at the last minute. Details on what you can expect in Venice can be found on the Venice Marathon live experience.

Summary statistics and results at Venice and Lucca Marathon on 10.24.2010

Two marathons have been run this 24.10.10 week-end in Italy.
As expected, the 25^th edition of the Venice Marathon, with live direct in TV, Satellite and internet delivered the highest performance. 298 athletes completed the 26.2 miles before 3h, this includes one of the contributors to this blog, Margantonio. The Kenian Mukun Simon Kamama completed the Venice Marathon in 2h09:35 minutes. As you might know, there was a cap of 6000 runners this year (plus 1000 for charity), and 6289 completed the marathon, which represents 89.8% of the total enrolled runners arriving at the finish line.

At the Lucca Marathon, we have noticed a reduction of runners from the first edition, since we observed only 689 runners at the finish line. Another Kenian, Metto Kipkering arrived first, completing the marathon in 2h17:39. Only 4 international runners arrived in the first 100 places. This looks pretty low compared to the expectations. Only 17 runners were international.

Since few readers are interested to see the full results, you can find below the 24.10.2010 rankings.
Venice Marathon 10.24.2010 Ranking
Lucca Marathon 10.24.2010 Ranking

25th Venice Marathon on Internet

At 9:20 am this Sunday 24th of October, the most sought Italian marathon will depart. If you are not one of the luckiest 6000 runners that will participate to the competition, you still have a chance at least to see what you missed. Indeed for the first time the Venice Marathon will arrive in Piazza San Marco. It is most likely the case that the 25th Edition of the Venice Marathon can be watched on Internet through the Broadcasting from the Italian Television. The Venice Marathon will be available in at the Venice Marathon Live Internet link. Hopefully, the link will still be visible this Sunday.

Results at the Italian 10.10.10 marathons: Carpi, Garda Lake Marathon and Cagliari

Three marathons have been run this 10.10.10 week-end in Italy.

In term of ranking, the main competition was among 2 marathons: Carpi and Lake Garda Marathon, one of the oldest and the youngest in Italy. Interesting enough, the two marathons are pretty closed from each other. The 2 starting lines are indeed far less than 125 miles (see distance from Limone to Maranello) and the arrival lines are only 87 miles far away (see distance from Malcesine to Carpi).

As already clear from last year results, where the calendar did not overlap, Carpi Marathon got the highest technical result, with the Kenian Malakwen Paul Kosgei completing the 26.2 miles in 2h09:00 minutes, and the coverage from the television and the internet. The full marathon was available at Rai Sport website. However, this year, there was a 16.7% reduction in attendance from runners: only 877 completed the full marathon. 116 foreign runners completed the full marathon, representing 31 countries (31 from Finland, 15 from the UK, 11 from Kenia of which Gladys Jebet, the last Kenian, arrived 18th, 8 from France, 5 from Switzerland and Germany).

At the Lake Garda marathon, the reduction was only of 10.6% compared to last year, with 1383 runners at the finish line. Pietro Colnaghi from Italy was 1000 euro, completing the marathon in 2h28:20. 30 of the top 100 runners were international, proving that the Lake Garda is considered a great place to run.

Finally, in Sardinia, there was the first edition of Cagliari Marathon, with 135 runners completing the race. This is an amazing result, taking into account that the first press release on the marathon was available only on the 9th of August 2010. Filippo Lo Piccolo, already 7th in Treviso in March in 2h19, won the marathon in 2h32:55 and got 3000 euro from the jackpot, very high to target higher level of runners. Cagliari will for sure be in a position to compete with larger marathon, thanks to its nice location and with some international marketing.

Since few readers are interested to see the full results, you can find below the 10.10.2010 rankings.
Lake Garda Marathon 10.10.2010 Ranking
Carpi Italian Marathon 10.10.2010 Ranking
Cagliari Marathon 10.10.2010 Ranking

2010 Brianza Marathon: a live experience

This post describes a live experience for March 21st 2010 Brianza Marathon and gives you insight of what it is really look like. Below you can find a translation from the original Brianza Marathon live experience. The Brianza Marathon is in the top 50 of the Italian ranking (number 31) from the number of participants, and it is included into the Seregno 100 kilometers competition. The site is not yet translated in English, since the large majority of Runners is local. 2010 Brianza Marathon winner's was the Kenian Weldon Kirui in 2h33:34. 221 runners reached the finish line, and another 170 completed the 100km competition. This is 21% less than previous year, mainly due to overlapping race the same day.

This is my third competition in 2010, but my first marathon. The first two races went very well, a 10k and half marathon closed with two Personal Best. I start therefore confident to win my third consecutive personal, which is 3 years old and is represented by 3h48 minutes. I want to run the first 30km in 5 minutes /km and then see what happens in the last 12km. During the week I checked the weather forecast, hoping to find a good day to run this marathon. But rain falling the same day of the marathon could have changed my hopes and dreams. I meet with 11 runners, including Maria Luisa, who will be running in the asphalt to prepare his travels in the deserts. Giancarlo, Dalba and Giorgio make a very long run to prepare for the marathon in Milan. Lele is at his first marathon. We warmed up with Clod running in circles at the kiosk. A light rain makes the air cool and damp, but the temperature of 9 degrees Celsius is ideal. Marathon starts at 9. Instead of running, David and Dalba started flying toward galactic time and we follow the pacer Lugi, which today is Lele’s pacer. During the first 5 km a small group of runners is formed around Lele who did not stop talking. It seems we are the pacers of 3h30.

At the 7th km, the group will unravel when Lugi increased his pace to 4'45 "/ km. I stay with them for less than a km and then greet them. The legs go round and even if I set to run more slowly, I decided to keep a 4.52/km step. I run then alone: just in front of me there is only one runner at 200 meters distance. At some point I do not see him anymore, and I start having the fear of getting lost in the streets of Brianza. Fortunately, the service is impeccable and every intersection is manned by volunteers. 

At the 24 km mark, I turn and I see Mac about 50 meters behind me, I urge him to join me but his face does not seem very convinced. Meanwhile, I keep the pace and enter inside the park of Monza. The roar of the engines on the famous Autodromo Nazionale Monza breaks the silence of this peaceful path, notwithstanding the ongoing roads used by cars. I got the impression that there is a complete difference between the Brianza Marathon and what happens at the same time at the half marathon at the Stramilano. Here, however, the drivers were calmly waiting at intersections, as if they were waiting for the elevation of the auction of a zero crossing.

At the 33 km mark, we are under via Tagliabue and we enter the city of Desio. Now I try hard to keep up and slow down a bit. I'm beginning to see the finish line of 3h30. Just doing maths, if I can turn going forward at 5' / km, I should close under the 3h28. At the 35 km mark, my forces are gone, my head begins to turn around, but I do not give up. To give relief, I swallow a handful of sugar cubes at the refreshment point; this hopefully gives me some more energy. I slow down a couple of seconds every kilometer that passes. We are in the end, I try to accelerate but I can not. I then meet Andrea who encourages me to keep up and he informed me that I am beating Vitto.

Then here is the finish line, and at this point I am driven by the cheering of my friends. I have made it. My friend and runner Ciaci, says that I finish in 3h27. I forgot to stop the Garmin. This was a good race, I am very satisfied, and indeed I believe that I can run in 3h25 next times.

I would like to give a round of applause to the organization that handled all flawlessly. Collect bags, showers, race packet and volunteers, just to frame a marathon. In addition to my PB, today also Lugi Dalbo, Titian, David, and Maria Luisa celebrated their personal best. It looks like that the Brianza Marathon allows to run faster, due to its flat race.

October Timex Global Trainer Giveaway

This is not core of Marathon Ranking, but I believe it is good information for the reader of this site.

A friendly site that I am following is giving away a super brand new Timex Global Trainer. Going to the  Timex Giveaway context, you can find more how you can get it. Based on former giveaway, you will have a possibility of 1 out of 500, i.e. 0.2%.

In November 2010, the giveaway is Garmin based: Garmin 210 Forerunner Giveaway.

2010 Florence Marathon: more than 11,000 runners?

According to the Organizers of the 27th Florence Marathon, runners around Europe have demonstrated a constant increase of interest for the event, year after year. In Mid September with more that 70 days to the marathon, which will take place on November 28th 2010, more than 6000 runners have already enrolled to the event. This figure represents an increase of more than 10% against last year on the same period, according to the organizers. Assuming a constant run rate, the organizers expect to see at the departing line in Piazzale Michelangelo more than 11 thousand participants. As matter of comparison, the largest marathon in Italy, Rome Marathon, had in March 15 thousand runners completing the marathon.

The organizers expect a spike in demand before October 15th where International runners can enroll at 65€. Enrollment closes on the 15th of November, at full fare of 75€.
France, the United Kingdom and Germany are the countries that will bring the highest number of runners. International runners are not only attracted by historical place like Florence, but also by the change in the course path, which became flatter compared to last year.

It is difficult to forecast additional personal best for international runners, however it is clear that Florence Marathon is becoming one of the biggest events in Italy and in few years time, if last 5 years trend continues, it will compete against the largest marathons in the world.

To get an idea on what you expect during the marathon, you can look at the 2008 Florence Marathon live experience and 2009 Florence Marathon live experience.

10.10.10 Marathon(s) in Italy

On Sunday 10.10.2010 many runners around the world will participate to their local marathon with the hope to beat their personal best. If you are a global runners, there is a lot of choice. In Europe, you could go to Munich in Germany (25th anniversary, expected: 1200 runners for the Marathon, registration closed), to Eindhoven in the Netherlands (27th edition, expected 1500 runners for the main event), to Brussels in Belgium (expected 2000 runners for the main event).

In Italy the choice is between tradition and novelty, Carpi Italian Marathon vs. Garda Lake Marathon. Ironically, those 2 marathons are ranking 10th in the Italian Marathon League, with around 1000 participants each.

2010 Palermo Marathon: 14 countries at the starting line

PALERMO, September 20 – There are already athletes from 14 countries who will participate to the sixteenth edition of the Palermo marathon in Sicily on Sunday 21 November 2010. Among the nations, leading the pack is France with 50 runners, followed by United States (35). Apart from athletes participating from countries already present last year (Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, Morocco, Kenya, Ethiopia, England, Germany), Palermo will see at its starting points also runners from Canada and Hungary, but also two athletes from India.

The Palermo Marathon route is 2-lap 13.1 miles, with a flat race, with some elevation in the first part of the race. In the following link the Garmin track of the Palermo Marathon route.
In this link you can find the Palermo Marathon 2009 results.

2 important Italian marathons have been cancelled in 2010

Unfortunately, few weeks ago, the organizers of 2 of the top 30 Italian Marathons have been cancelled for 2010. On one side, the Marengo Marathon in Alessandria, due on the 17th of October 2010, will not be maintained in 2010 for personal problems of the organizers. In 2009 223 people arrived to the finish line of the Marathon, while 450 participated to the Half Marathon. The marathon is known for its flat course and enticed participants with fast results in ideal weather conditions.

The Marengo Marathon is run in Alessandria, city in the North-West of Italy, with 100 thousand inhabitants. The name of the marathon related to the "Battle of Marengo" which is one of the most famous battle of Napoleon in Italy. The General won against the Austrian army and regained the domain of Italy.

The Ravenna Marathon, scheduled for November 14th has also been cancelled.

Treviso Marathon 2011: enrollments are opened

Enrollment to the 8th edition of the Treviso Marathon has started yesterday. This is indeed seven months before March 27th 2011.
The enrollment fee is very low: 25 euro, and it is valid till November 18. Foreign runners can pay 20 euro, for their first partecipation, as long as they enrol for the first deadline. Runners can enrol online to the Treviso Marathon at Active Global.
The event will take place in its original date: last week of March, as it was in 2009, but not in 2010 due to Italian regional elections.
The Treviso Marathon is known for its fast and flat course through one of the most interesting city in Italy. In 2011 the route of the marathon will link the historic centers of Vittorio Veneto, Treviso, uniting the Piave river through left and right crossing Priula bridge.
Treviso is an ideal course, not only for advanced athletes, who seek their personal best. But also for novice marathoners thanks to race conditions, the support of a unique public and presumably optimal weather conditions for racing.

Custoza Marathon: the last edition

The organizers of the International Custoza Marathon have recently indicated that its last edition will take place next year on May 8th, 2011. Unfortunately, twelve years after the first edition, they have decided not to continue after 2011. Their however hope is to celebrate for the last time the arrival in the park of Villa Venier with the highest number of partecipants. Therefore registrations are already opened in the Custoza Marathon website and will close on Thursday, May 5 at 8pm or after reaching the 1,000 enrolment, since they plan to offer all the best services for such type of marathon. Two new mascots of the marathon, Botty and Tappy, have been presented on the website, to remember the runners that the Custoza marathon experience is also about celebration, with chance to do wine tasting. The registration fee is confirmed in 25 euro per runner or 40 euro per couple for special categories of mixed couples or families. As in every Italian Marathon, the medical certificate for athletic activities is mandatory.

2010 Venice Marathon: bibs already sold-out

Just quoting an article from the Venice Marathon website, where it has been announced that all 6000 bibs for the 25th edition have already been assigned. This is an incredible achievement, 6 months before the event, and demonstrates the interest for one of the most fascinating marathon in the world. An additional 1000 bibs (500 for Italians, 500 for foreign runners) will be offered in May, to charity projects. If you are not lucky to get the bib, several options for runners are however still opened. First, on the 24th of October 2010, there is still the possibility to go to the second edition of the Lucca Marathon, otherwise Carpi Marathon, one of the best organized, is a good alternative on the 10th of October 2010. But it is most likely that runners will then turn their attention to the Florence Marathon on the 28th of November 2010. To see what the Venice Marathon live experience looks like, you can read the related posting.

The 25th Venicemarathon - Trofeo Casinò di Venezia – marks the first important result of this special edition. The last number of the traditional 6,000 bib numbers that the Organizing Committee puts at athletes’ disposal has been assigned this morning. In fact the participant cap due to the physical limitations of the last part of the course and to the choice of offering athletes good services has already been reached. The novelty of the passing of the race course through Saint Mark’s Square - the present that the Organizing Committee has planned for the participants at the 25th Venicemarathon – has been going around the world and in few months the 6,000 available bib numbers have been assigned.

“6,000 participants already registered six months before the event confirm the planetary success of Venicemarathon” these are the words of Piero Rosa Salva – promoter of the marathon 25 years ago – “This is an important goal in a difficult moment due to the economic crisis and to the increasing of the number of marathons in the calendar. All Venicemarathon staff will do the best to make all marathoners live an extraordinary 25th edition of the unique marathon in the world.”

Therefore on Wednesday 5th May, from 12:00, the online selling of the 1,000 special bib numbers will start. This choice has been taken thanks to the great request both from national and foreign runners and these 1,000 numbers will be divided in equal part between foreigners and Italians. They will cost 20 Euros more than the basic fee as the difference will be donated to two important social projects that Venicemarathon has been supporting for years.

As it happened last year 500 bib numbers will be assigned to help the creation of prosthesis for children, thanks to the project “Bimbingamba” supported by Alex Zanardi.

“I am very happy that Venicemarathon is having such success" – reported the ex-pilot of Formula 1 – "and I am even more happy to know that the Organizers have decided to repeat the beautiful effort of last year which allow the creation of prosthesis and the complete assistance to 7 children, coming from different parts of the world. I will be there to run, but especially to thank all athletes who have decided to run for this special purpose.”

The other 500 numbers will be devoted to ‘Run For Water, Run For Life’ to the digging of other drinking water wells in Uganda. Since 2006 the NGO Africa Mission – Cooperazione e Sviluppo, promoter of the project, has dug 7 water wells and has renewed 3 water wellsprings supplying drinking water to over 9,000 people. This was possible thanks to the fund raising supported by Venicemarathon.

The engagement for social purposes has been double this year and this shows that Venicemarathon is not only a run but an event with a big heart. Also the two Family Runs, the non competitive races of 4 km which will take place in the Parco San Giuliano in Mestre and in Dolo at the Marathon Eve will have special numbers supporting the marathon social projects.

If these last 1,000 bib numbers follow the selling trend of the traditional bib numbers, the registrations will be completely closed in a two-week-time, marking an incredible success for Venicemarathon and for all Italian marathons. On the official web site of the event, www.venicemarathon.it, it will be possible to check day after day the amount of the numbers still available thank you to the counter marking the count-down.