Regional marathon kicks off with new record
A lot of excitement and euphoria has been created with the launch of the 2nd edition of the millennium marathon 2016 which has kicked off in the Northern and Upper West Regions.
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With this year’s marathon slogan “A race for health and Peace”, momentum for the rest of the regional marathons is set as the first marathon has produced a new regional marathon record. These 2 races are the first of 10 regional marathons to take place before the main international marathon in September.
Iddrisu Adams from the Ghana Revenue Authority in the Upper West Region on Saturday broke the Regional Marathon record he set in 2015 by completing the 10.5k race in an impressive 29min30sec.
The previous record was 30minutes. Baloun Zuleiha from the Tuma Sakai Primary school also made history by being the youngest female ever to win a regional marathon at 12 years old. She completed the race in an impressive 35min03sec
In Tamale, Yakubu Alhassan, an athlete, and Ibrahim Rabiatu, a student took first in the male and female race respectively. Yakubu finished in 35mins:57sec Whiles Ibrahim Rabiatu finished in 48mins:20 secs
Winners in both male and female categories took home cash prizes, Awango solar products from Total and water from Melcom. They will both receive a placement in the professional Athlete’s programme being instituted by the Millennium Marathon Sports Ltd to groom and train marathon runners. Prizes were given to the first 10 finishers in each region.
The Millennium marathon this year is partnering with the United Nations to raise awareness on the Sustainable Development Goals, (SDG's) nationwide.
A representative of the United Nations,Abebe Hankore, speaking at the launch of the program, underscored the need for sports to be recognised as an important contributor to development, peace and inclusiveness in Ghana. He spoke at the sensitisation ceremony after the race.
This year’s Millennium Marathon is sponsored by Peugeot/WATS, Total Ghana, Ayrton drugs, Ethiopian Airlines, H20 Still Water, Royal Bank and Africa World Airlines
Present at the event was the Deputy Minister for Youth and Sports, Vincent Asamoah who started the race and presented awards to the top runners and winners of the marathon. He also used the platform to advise parents to nurture athletic interest in their children even as they acquire the needed education. He also expressed the view that sports, just like education can also be an avenue for success if taken into consideration.