The famous Beau Vallon beach in Seychelles once again witnessed yet another year of excellent turn out at the 12th Edition of the Seychelles Eco-Friendly Marathon.
The event, which has now become a date marked on the international runners’ calendar, allows participants from all over the globe to compete whilst enjoying a panoramic view of beautiful Seychelles on their course.
The rain and winds did not deter the participants as a little over three thousand runners registered for the 2019 edition that regrouped various race categories that catered for runners of all ages and abilities.
It was almost natural to see the participation of children alongside their parents, couples, elderly, marathon fanatics and marathon experts rub shoulders to run on the different distances including distances specifically 5km, 10km, the 21k- half-marathon and the 42k full marathon.
The 5km race was the most popular event of this 2019 edition with over 1600 participants from various nationalities including South Korea, India, Nepal, Malaysia, UK, Finland, France, US, Kenya amongst others.
On the men’s side Matheus Kadhingula from Namibia won the race, Kenyan National Jackson Ndegwa seconded him, while Geno Belle young promising Seychellois runner made it to the third position on the podium.
On the women side, Wambui Maina from Kenya made it first in her category followed by Seychelloise Maggy Harray and Malagasy national Corine Rasaonanteniana.
The events also saw the participation of Vice President of Seychelles Mr. Vincent Meriton who ran 10km and Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) Chief Executive Mrs. Sherin Francis who ran 5km. Mrs Francis was joined by a strong STB team comprising of members from Headquarters and foreign offices.
Commenting on the 2019 edition of the Eco-Friendly Marathon, Mrs. Francis applauded the organising committee for putting together a successful event; she mentioned that the turnout of the international participants on all races showed how popular the event has become internationally.
“The Eco-Friendly Marathon is an addition to our efforts of marketing Seychelles more than a sand, sea and sun destination. The event has allowed us to place Seychelles on the map as beautiful sports destination, which is picking up with various other sports disciplines being organised in the Seychelles,” said Mrs. Francis.
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Mrs. Francis mentioned that STB remains a proud partner to the event as it creates visibility for Seychelles in the international sports-specialised press.
The race day concluded with a dinner at the Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay Resort & Casino where various personalities were present to crown the Winners of the Half-Marathon and Marathon 2019
Present at the event were designated Minister also Minister for Home Affairs, Local Government, Youth, Sports, Culture, and Risk & Disaster Management, Mrs Macsuzy Mondon, Jean Larue, CEO National Sports Council (NSC), Ms. Jenifer Sinon, Seychelles Tourism Board Deputy Chief Executive and Gustave De Commarmond- Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Creative Industries and National Events Agency (CINEA).
During her speech at the dinner event Mrs. Mondon mentioned her great satisfaction to see the participation of people from different nationalities, age groups, walks of life. Mrs Mondon further mentioned that participating in such a race takes courage and commitment.
She took the opportunity to thank the sponsors, race director Ms. Giovanna Rousseau and her team and all volunteers who have helped in making the event a success.
On her part, race director Ms. Giovanna Rousseau commented on her gratitude towards her team for the efforts submitted by each one of them, she mentioned that the number of participants keeps growing every year and she conveyed her wishes to have more participants join the Seychelles Eco-Friendly Marathon for the coming edition.
The 12th Edition of the Seychelles Eco-Friendly Marathon registered a number of 65 foreign participants from 28 countries this year.
MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, [email protected] www.seychelles.travel
