The Organization highlights that the new circuit is faster and flatter than last year´s
Over 1,300 runners have already signed up for the race, practially doubling the amount registered last year
The Cabildo de Gran Canaria´s Sports Councillor, Ángel Víctor Torres, and the manager of the temporary business association (TBA) organizaing the event, Francisco Armas, presented the Cajasiete Gran Canaria Marathon´s new circuit for 2018. A new and improved circuit has been laid out as a result of the inconveniences the building of the Metroguagua caused to last year´s route.
Both Torres and Armas stressed that the new circuits for the three distances improve the flow of runners, as well as cause the least amount of inconveniences possible for the city´s traffic. The new route will reduce the race´s impact around San José, Alcaravaneras and the Navy Base.
Torres stressed that this is a “better” circuit than last year, in which runners, among other things, run less kilometers along the Avenida Marítima and, therefore, are less exposed to the wind. Runners will now race through more sheltered areas such as Vegueta, “making the race more attractive for tourists” he added.
Armas, on the other hand, explained that the new layout is “somewhat faster and flatter than the previous one, helping the race and the city´s traffic to coexist”. The manager of the organizing TBA explained that, as soon as they knew the impact the building of the Metroguagua would have on the previous route, they have been working hand in hand with the Cabildo and City Council of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to redefine a one lap circuit which guarantees the safety of all the runners.
All the security services involved in the race have agreed on the new modifications, such as the City´s Local Police Department, Civil Traffic Guard, National Police, Civil Protection or Fire Department of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, among others.
PARTICIPATION
While presenting the new route, the Sports Councillor noted the increase in the number of people taking part in the Marathon. He underlined that both this year´s and last years races saw significant increases. As it stands, the number of marathon runners is at 1,301, a figure that practically doubles the total number registered in the 2016 race.
Likewise, the amount of runners from abroad has already hit 758, which is almost 60 percent of all those taking part in the 42K race. Torres explained that the data suggests that only 8 percent of foreigners repeat the marathon, “meaning we will have some 700 foreign athletes who will visit Gran Canaria for the first time to run the marathon”.
Armas, meanwhile, said they are still trying to hit the 2,000 runners mark, knowing that it is “ambitious, but hoping, at least, to be as close as possible to that figure.”
The finishers of the last edition place the Cajasiete Gran Canaria Marathon in tenth position in the country´s ranking. Not only is it in the ‘top ten’ , but it is the highest growing marathon in terms of number of participants reaching the Marathon´s finish line .
The Sports Councillor concluded that we were on the “right track” for the race to continue to grow in quality and international visibility. He also thanked Cajasiete, the main sponsor of the event, for their support as well as all the other private companies that support the race.