Marathon runners protest as lead car goes astray

adriana zahra

Mar 2nd 2010, 15:50

Still i keep on saying that it is not fair on Mr. Balzan the result. He makes a big effort for such events. Always running in our village streets were we live at Safi,every body see him. You are a Champion Mr.Balzan ! Halsafi is proud of you! :)

d briffa

Mar 2nd 2010, 15:14

Well.. its not enough being ridiculed in international football events.. now its also the turn of Athletics..

Now this is getting serious..!!..

To whom it may concern.. isn't it about time that we invest more in motorsports... atleast from there we are getting home some very positive and encouraging results!!

RGatt

Mar 2nd 2010, 15:11

Only in Malta - Maltese gemgem about anything. This, apart from trying to daylight burgle others must be our favourite passtime. We surely must be on top of the list when it comes to moaning about anything. If it's not 100% to our liking, then none of it is right. It's these kind of people that make a mockery and a Mickey Mouse country of Malta. As Nathan Farrugia remarked, if you had to wait 15, 20 or even 30 mins. for the road to reopen, why didn't you get out of your vehicle and support and applaud the contestants for their efforts. Surely they deserved them. Well done all participants and pity about the lead car incident, which I'm sure we'll learn a lesson from for the future.

@ Kevin Galea - It-triq b'ohra il-PL jaqbada, meta jaghmel dawk il-U turns kollha. Il-vat, EU, iz-zwieg mal-GWU u hafna ohrajn. Il-PN qabad it-triq li hass li hija l-ahjar ghalina i.e. EU, u qatt ma zvija.

Adrian Farrugia

Mar 2nd 2010, 12:53

First of all, a well deserved well done to all those who participated. Its a disappointment for the front runners for this incident to have happened to them. i understand their anger 100% after all the preparation and peaking for that special day. Hope that the organizers learn from the mishap and make sure this will not happen again. But overall for the recreational runner I can confirm that it was fun doing it. :>)
AS FOR V.Brown...if he had some common sense he would have arrived earlier if he got out of the seat of his vehicle and ran the distance.

Shirley A Brincat

Mar 2nd 2010, 11:46

Veru ONLY IN MALTA ! I agree with Mario Aquilina ... KIF TRIDNI INKUN KBURI LI JIEN MALTIJA. Isiru hmerijiet minn kull qasam. Ahna ahna jew mahniex !

RGatt

Mar 2nd 2010, 10:51

@ Kevin Galea - It-triq b'ohra il-PL jaqbada meta jaghmel dawk il-U turns kollha. Il-vat, EU, iz-zwieg mal-GWU u hafna ohrajn. Il-PN qabad it-triq li hass li hija l-ahjar ghalina i.e. EU, u qatt ma zvija.

victor sammut

Mar 2nd 2010, 10:33

Ghal dawk is sewwieqa li ma jafux xi ihnu sports u gergru habba it-traffic,issa fit 2 ta april IL GIMGHA IL KBIRA malta kollha tista tajt bejn it 3.00pm u 8.00pm ikun maghluq,SE TAMEL????.toqod iddoq il horn????u taddi il kummentti li min hu ahjar minnek ghax kapaci jigri 21kms jew 42kms,ghax ahna kwazi nofs il-poplu hu baxx u injorant, NEW YORK & BERLIN MARATHONER.. KEEP IT UP RUNNERS,..NEVER GIVE UP

robert micallef

Mar 1st 2010, 22:25

@ v brown

if you had a bicycle it would have take you 10 minutes to get to B'kara, you could also have had fun doing it.

check this video out
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=457458370312&ref=ts

and yes after 5 hours of cycling up and down Mellieha i was wondering if i need an ambulance to get home.
but some people will never understand this as the bus driver of the double decker said when i asked him if he knew that he nearly ran over me.
"and so ? what would have happend ?"

Kevin Zammit

Mar 1st 2010, 21:19

Well, first of all i must start by saying that i admire the dedication of Johnathan. I must also add that i feel sorry that this had to happen. He certainly deserves much better. What i dont understand is why he wants the result to be null ?! It would not be fair on the runners who also trained hard to be able to present themselves on the start line. Two wrongs don't make one right.

With regards to the organisation I feel that in general the marathon is well organised . In fact the atmosphere was very enjoyable (Yesterday I ran and really enjoyed the run). Yesterday's mistake is unacceptable but let's remember that at the current WINTER OLYMPIC Games in Vancouver similar mistakes happened. In the male and female biathlon pursuit events, athletes were allowed to start their races in different time frames! certain athletes had to leave let's say after 2 min and were mistakenly allowed to leave after 15 sec and some others the other way round!! And this is the Olympic Games!

Kevin Galea- Time to grow up my friend.

Simone Magri

Mar 1st 2010, 18:04

@V. Brown ...whoever you are ... stop complaining and try run a marathon !! Athletes train hard for this event. It s not about elite athletes taking part it s about ppl who enjoy running , who are sport minded and healthy and who no thanks to you face traffic everyday or several times a week to train hard for this event. As marika said we athletes do this country a big favour , we hardly get sick, we are not overweight so we suffer less diseases . To all the other writers who are complaining about being stuck in traffic ...how about cheering athletes on ? or that would never cross your mind ? How about some respect for the athletes and some collaboration too. If you dont want to cheer us how about for once ...just for once ...going out later in the day ? The marathon happens just once a year ! It promotes a healthier lifestyle ! Maybe one day we ll have less obese children on our little rock !

Andre' Camenzuli

Mar 1st 2010, 17:29

Ghandu ragun Jonathan, flimkien mal-atleta/i ohra li gew zvijjati ikun irrabjat....dan zball gravissimu u t-tort u r-responsabbilita' ghandu jintrefa' kollu kemm hu mill-organizazzjoni.

mario aquilina

Mar 1st 2010, 17:18

Kif tridnhi nkun kburi li jien Malti!

Mario Hammett

Mar 1st 2010, 15:16

@ R. Vella Bamber. Four runners were running immediately behind the car when it left the designated course. Two of them, both Moroccans, stayed with the car until it eventually rejoined the course but another two dropped out in confusion.

If the sequence of events is correct why didn't Jonathan Balzan and the Dutch runner continue with the Moroccans behind the lead car? They too would have rejoined the course. Were the four runners all bunched up together? Or were the two drop outs quite a way back from the Moroccans? Because if they were, how could the lead car guide two different sets of runners? If someone might have suggested that the organizers could have sent help for the lost runners, it would have already been game-over by the time it would have taken them to arrive there.
So again this was nothing but a great misfortune for the two drop out athletes due to a very stupid mistake. I also think these two runners are owed a serious appology.

E. Darmanin

Mar 1st 2010, 14:01

Prosit!!! A case in point for this saying - 'Min hu l-ahhar jigi l-ewwel u min hu l-ewwel jigi l-ahhar'

STEPHEN ZAMMIT

Mar 1st 2010, 13:48

WOW...Thank god I did'nt go out yesterday...Although I see a number of local newspaper websites including this one, I was not aware that the Marathon was on yesterday. Perhaps better marketing on maltese websites would help. To remember this activity from the previous year is like wishing for rain in July.
Although roads are closed abroad especially in cities like London New York etc for this type of activities, they have other means of transport (like underground , overhead trains etc). In Malta these do not exist and hence one is blocked in the car in traffic.
Well done to all the partecipants and organisers for their sacrifices and efforts. One bug by the driver does not remove all this goodwill. However in my opinion he should not drive the lead car again. For me the official results for the first three places of this activity should be null and void.

Andrew Mifsud

Mar 1st 2010, 13:19

1 - living in rabat, i would like to show my disgust to the wy traffic was managed. one policeman told me ''there s no way out, you MUST wait here for 30mins''. i was in nigret at that time. if the organisers want to do something similar to abroad they must ensure proper traffic management. from rabat to the end of mrihel bypass,was all 1 lane ON A SUNDAY..when all the people go out.

2 - at aaround 11.45am there was this blue van, moving, with a person having half of his body out of the van, ccollecting the orange cones used for marking the path. this started from where the cemetry in attard is, presumably till the end of the mrihel bypass (coz i managed to overtake). then someone gets hurt, and everyone says , ''ooo pity, he was doing his job'' WITH THE VAN MOVING AND CARS DRIVING BY....u leeee

N. Borg

Mar 1st 2010, 12:54

@ M. Cristiano

There were quite a few notices in the papers in the run up to this event and you should start getting up to date with what is happening around you.

Moreover, so now you know and in a year's time you don't have any excuses, note that
this event is held on the last Sunday in February for the past 25 years.

jFarr

Mar 1st 2010, 12:00

@John Dingli. I'd like to see your reaction if you trainer all year and someone messed up so badly that you had to quit, And if they do happen abrad as well they i suggest the organisers should take up a different job, like removing mines in Aghanistan.
@ Frustrated drivers, get off your bums and do some excercise instead of maoning, it was a lovely day and a walk run jog would have done you a lot of good.

Last point, its not the country that has issues its the people so insetad of only in Malta and pajjiz tal mickey mouse, change the tape to Nies tal mickey mouse and only by the people of malta. pls

Joe Fenech

Mar 1st 2010, 11:40

Lawrence Bonello:

Iva, nahseb qabdet it-triq lejn il-Highlands!!!

Joe Fenech

Mar 1st 2010, 11:32

Don't GPS exist in Malta???????

ONLY IN MALTA brand!