Hard work pays off

After months of hard work and preparation, last week’s Malta Marathon once again saw a record number of participants, registering 403 finishers in the marathon and 2,385 in the half marathon and walkathon. The overall number of finishers increased by 560 on 2012, a rise of 25 per cent. The following is an analysis by Joe Micallef, the Race Director...

[attach id="239265" size="medium"]Mohamed Hajjy (no.1) on his way to establishing a new record in the Malta Marathon. Photo: Paul Zammit Cutajar[/attach]

I can safely predict that the 2014 Malta Marathon will see another increase in the entry field as there is a natural growth in the number of local participants.

Unfortunately, the percentage of Maltese who practise sport is rather low when compared with other developed countries.

Thankfully, this is changing and, in fact, this year there was a 28 per cent increase in the number of Maltese participants in our events – from 1,543 to 1,980.

Through the advertising that the Malta Tourism Authority does and our own promotion, we should hopefully also see another upturn in the number of foreigners next year. Last week, there was a 22 per cent rise in this category – from 1,014 to 1,236.

The percentage increase (from 2009 to 2012) in the number of Maltese participants has been 20%, 20%, 59% and 25%, respectively, over previous years while that for foreigners (from 2010 to 2012) was 32%, 33% and 5%.

So, where do these statistics take us?

By forecasting a modest 15 per cent increase in local runners and 10 per cent in foreign participation, we should see entries in 2014 rise again to 3,637. The question before used to be whether we would ever have 1,000, 2,000 or 3,000 runners but now we’re confident of breaking the 4,000-barrier.

The major change this year was the timing of the Walkathon start.

Having received several comments from half marathon runners, stating that they found groups of walkers obstructing their way along the route, last year we brought the walkathon time forward from 09.00 to 08.30 hoping that the walkathon groups would thin out by the time the half marathoners met them along the way.

Another positive aspect of the Malta Marathon this year was Mohamed Hajjy’s record, 2:16:06 in the marathon. This was a full 2 minutes 32 seconds faster than the previous record set in 2008.

This did not materialise, however, possibly because of the increase in the number of participants at the walkathon.

Furthermore, the first ‘walker’, who ran all the way down to Sliema, nearly stole the limelight by finishing before the marathon winner. Thankfully, he was overtaken at Ta’ Xbiex.

Having the walkathon starting before the half marathon meant same time finishes for most of the participants, hence last year’s congestion at the gantry in Sliema.

But, with the walkathon starting exactly after the half marathon this time round it seemed we have settled all issues. Now, we can safely say that the format will be retained in future.

In order to give as much time as possible for walkers to complete the distance by the 13.00 time limit, the half marathon was brought forward from 10.00 to 09.20.

The time limit has now been reduced from last year’s 4 hours 30 mins to 3 hours 40 mins. There were 72 participants who finished beyond this time barrier and the last runner in on Sunday was from the full marathon. They all got their medal and were also included in the official results.

The number of bands along the route this year was increased from 16 to 20 and for the first time toilets were set up along the route. We also had the novelty of having pictures taken and uploaded on Facebook while runners were still on their way to Sliema.

Another positive aspect of the Malta Marathon this year was Mohamed Hajjy’s record, 2:16:06 in the marathon.

This was a full 2 minutes 32 seconds faster than the previous record set in 2008.

Finally, I would like to thank Astrid Fleri Soler and Adele Muscat for their contribution and interesting articles over the past three months.

I would also like to show my gratitude for the multitude of volunteers, coming from various organisations and associations, and our friends and families for being so supportive.

Now, it’s time for everyone to take a deserved break. So, ease off for a short while until it’s time to start preparing for the 2014 Malta Marathon.

Marathon statistics

Malta Marathon records (men)
2:16:06: Mohamed Hajjy (Morocco) - 2013
2:26:27: Jonathan Balzan (Malta) - 2008

Malta Marathon records (women)
2:40:28: Carolyn Hunter Rowe (GB) - 1994
2:56:40: Carmen Hili (Malta) - 2013

Half Marathon records (men)
1:02:50: Mark Hudspith (GB) - 1995
1:07:19: Gerald Degaetano (Malta) - 1990

Half Marathon records (women)
1:13:50: Silvia Renz (Germany) - 2004
1:14:19: Carol Galea (Malta) - 1997