‘De Valencia al Rio’: 26 elite athletes will be competing to get Olympic qualfying times in 2015 Valencia Marathon
The Trinidad Alfonso Valencia Marathon, organized by the Correcaminos Athletics Club and The Valencian Government, can proudly confirm 26 elite runners who will be attempting to obtain their Olympic qualifying time on the 15th of November 2015.
In this very special 35th edition of the Trinidad Alfonso Valencia Marathon, the organization will give 5,000 Euros to any runner that qualifies for the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games thanks to their finishing time in Valencia. The runners will then represent their own nation once selected for their national squad based on their qualifying time in Valencia. As of this date the odds are very high that Valencia will see a lot of Olympic qualifying times based on the communications received from the international athletics associations sending athletes to Valencia.
These 26 runners, on top of the other elite runners that will be confirming in the next few days, will make up a second and third lead group that will try to keep pace with the first lead group made up Kenyans, Ethiopians and Eritreans. The runners aiming to get their qualifying time will contribute to the Trinidad Alfonso Valencia Marathon in 3 ways:
1) They will raise the average finishing time of the event, complementing the very fast times of the lead group.
2) The supporters of the runners will be following the Valencia Marathon in their own countries, further increasing the international reputation of Valencia as La Ciudad del Running.
3) The crowd will be fully behind the runners as they push themselves to get their qualifying time to earn the right to compete in the Olympic Games in Rio.
The 26 elite runners that are competing as of today’s date come from 10 different countries: Belgium, Portugal, Argentina, Paraguay, Lithuania, The Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Venezuela and South Africa. This international pack will be adding an extra dimension to an event that has grown and consolidated itself as one of the best marathons in Europe. Valencia’s recent highlights include being awarded the silver label by the IAAF and the fastest marathon on Spanish soil. Valencia is a very fast, flat course, the male runners will be looking to finish in between 2:12 hrs y 2:19 hrs, the female runners will be aiming for 2:35 hrs and 2:42 hrs. With these times the runners will be in contention to represent their national federations at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio
Among the experienced elite international athletes that have already confirmed to run at the Valencian Marathon are: Tanith Maxwell (South Africa), Barbara Sanchez (Ireland). Alongside these experienced runners are the young promises of Luis Orta (Venezuela) an the Lithuanian Renars Roze.
The roster of very fast international runners is not yet complete, the ‘De Valencia al Rio’ program has not closed. Many international federations are currently in negotiations to send their elite runners to compete in Valencia on the 15th of November. In addition, the Spanish Athletics Federation will be shortly confirming various Olympic contenders for the Valencia Marathon.
The success of the ‘Valencia al Rio’ program is a very big step in consolidating new markets. After Félix Kipkemoi (2:07:13) achieved the fastest ever Spanish Marathon in 2013 Valencia became extremely well known internationally. This international fame in combination with the fantastic running conditions and setting makes Valencia an ideal marathon location. The biggest attractions that bring runners to Valencia are; perfect running weather, a flat course and amazing international participation from amateur and elite runners.
Finally, for any athlete to be considered for any prize money or financial reward from the Trinidad Alfonso Valencia Marathon it is noted that the organization strictly adheres to to the anti-doping controls and measures as laid out by the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) and the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency).
