Limassol Marathon

This report is to be treated as both complimentary and as constructive criticism against the knowledge of participating in 253 marathons , running at the age of 73, having run marathon on both road and off road plus marathons and ultra’s up to 54 miles and in some 15 different countries. 

-1-        The course was acceptable for runners who wish to achieve PB [ personnel best times ], it was well marked with respect to “ turn around “ for the 10 k runners and the ½ marathon runners plus the TWO turn around positions for the marathon runners at the extreme ends of the course 

-2-        The course was virtually “ traffic free “ at least for the first 2 ½ - 3 hrs and even after this up to 5 hrs was noted as having very little traffic [ which was well controlled by the Police and marshals ] 

-3-        The water stations were well manned having both bottled water and isotonic drinks, the bottles could have been a little smaller to allow the bottle to be carried between water stations 

-4-        Having the bottle tops “ loose “ was excellent since the runner can chose to “ keep or dispense “ with the bottle after drinking 

-5-            Marshalling for change of direction after leaving the city and heading towards the port part of the course will require to be identified more clearly since it was “ possible “ to miss the left / right turn directions and go around “ round about’s “ in the wrong direction 

-6-        Whilst the traffic control marker take “ indicated “ the general direction, having “ directional signs “ would assist tremendously 

-7-        Whilst the course was identified in 5 k distance markers with some “ odd “ in between markings ie 7.5 k / 12.5 k etc, to have MORE km markers would be helpful 

-8-        It was a good idea having the electronic mats at the half way point and finish plus the one at the start which a lot of runners “ missed “ including the writer due to the mat only covering HALF of the carriageway and not fully across the carriageway 

-9-        Many international races have electronic mats at 10 / 20 / 21 / 30 / 40 km points which allows the organizers to ratify that a runner has completed each section of the course – this could be considered for the future 

-10-       The “ shutting down “ of the organization just before the 5 hours mark is not deemed acceptable since the slower runners still require to be informed of the results and acts as an encouragement to keep the public in the finish area to support the “ tail end “ runners 

-11-       Issuing of the prizes to the first THREE in each race and in each category as early as possible is admirable – however the many other runners who are eligible for an award or prize could not be allocated such an award since the shut down of the system occurred “ too early “ – consider extending the occupancy period 

-12-       The situation regarding the storage of clothing especially since it was raining prior and at the commencement of the race should be addressed to enable all the runners to store their clothing in secure and dry conditions 

Consideration may have to be given to changing the “ venue “ to a position which could accommodate this requirement with facility to mark each bag with the runners number 

-13-            Considering item -11- above , consideration could be given to holding an evening entertainment session with a guest speaker at which the remaining award participants could be formally issued with their award and finalized the days events – the final results of all categories should be available for publication 

-14-       Finally the matter of the start of the race should be addressed with respect to breaking up the three main categories ie Marathon , Half Marathon and Ten Kilometer so that the marathon starts at 0900 , ½ marathon at 0915 and 10k at 0925 – this will save the congestion at the start of the race 

This will also allow all of the chipped participants to pass over the start mat which will give an accurate timing from start to finish of each runner 

This report has been complied by Colin Poole age 73 years old with 253 marathon completed and a member of the 100 Marathon Club of Great Britain and having completed in some 15 countries 

This report is deemed to be constructive criticism only since the event fulfilled 85 / 90 % of the expectations on seasoned marathon runners  

Colin Poole
100 Marathon Club