Over 30,000 runners took part in the Edinburgh Marathon Festival in the Scottish capital on 28-29 May. The event is the biggest running event in Scotland and has been awarded a 5-Star certification from European Athletics Running For All.
Runners from across the globe gathered for Scotland’s biggest running festival which staged events for runners of all abilities and ages. The pinnacle of the weekend was the full marathon while children were able to join in by running in the junior races.
While most runners chose to run in the 5km, 10km, half marathon or marathon, one runner opted to contest in all four events staged in a little over twenty four hours. Gavin Thomson ran in all four events for MND Scotland in memory of his aunt who passed away from Motor Neurone Disease in December 2013.
He began his Edinburgh Marathon Festival weekend yesterday by completing both the 5K and 10K races around Holyrood Park. After a 15km warm-up on the Saturday, Thomson was up and running again the following day as he tackled nearly 65km by taking part in the half marathon and marathon.
“That’s probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life, my body is in absolute agony!” he said after the marathon. “Halfway through the full marathon was the hardest part of today, at that point I thought to myself ‘I can’t do this’, then I thought of my auntie and it got me through.”
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Kenyans Boaz Kiprono (2:19:55) and Eddah Jepkosgei (2:39:53) dominated the elite races but there might have been a glimpse of the future of Scottish distance running as 13-year-old Alisha Sivell won the 5km in 19:43. “I ran the 2K last year but was too old for it this year so decided to run the 5k instead. It was a really good experience,” she said.
Around 850 youngsters also took part in Saturday’s junior races, consisting of the 1.5km for 6-8 year-olds and the 2km for 9-12 year-olds.
Neil Kilgour, the Edinburgh Marathon Festival Director, said: “We are proud to host a truly world class running event in Scotland’s capital for people of all ages and abilities from across the globe. Congratulations to everyone who took part.”
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More than 1500 runners from the Edinburgh Marathon Festival Official Charity, Macmillan Cancer Support, took part and together with hundreds of other charities, are hoping to raise more than £4.5 million.
Entries for the 2017 Edinburgh Marathon Festival which takes place on Bank Holiday Weekend on 27-28 May 2017 are open with an early bird discount for everyone who registers before 12 June at www.edinburghmarathon.com.
The European Athletics Quality Road Race standards act as an assurance for road runners throughout Europe. They distinguish between races that respect the standards and those that haven’t sought certification or assessment. They form the foundation of Running for All, a strong recognisable brand for running activities throughout Europe.
More information on Running for All:
Website: european-running4all.org
Twitter: @runningforall
Contact: [email protected]