Almargem says that it was the last to know of the Algarvian Ultra Trail (ALUT) race, which ends this Sunday, December 3rd, and complains of not having been involved in the organization of an event that uses the registered name and the infrastructure of which it is the managing entity. The Algarve Trail Running Association, organizer of the event, defended itself, guaranteeing that Almargem was the first to be contacted and that they sought to involve it from the very beginning, but that it did not show “availability”.
The disagreement between the two associations goes even further, as the managing entity of Via Algarviana, in a communication to its partners that the Sul Informação had access, also accuses the organizers of ALUT of having refused to contribute a budget for the maintenance of the Via Algarviana.
The organizers of this competition, which brings together athletes from several countries, confirm the refusal, but guarantee that participants were asked to contribute to Almargem. In addition, they consider that, by «contributing to the dissemination of the Via Algarviana», they are already helping the management entity.
The objective of this event, according to Algarve Trail Running, is to «promote the region's economy», but that did not stop the controversy.
In the communication sent to Via Algarviana partners, Anabela Santos, coordinator of this project, argues that «the entire event was organized without the involvement» of Almargem, the entity that created the pedestrian and cycle path that crosses the interior of the region, «and that the has managed to this day, with the support of the partner Chambers and Parish Councils».
In the text, Anabela Santos recalls that «Via Algarviana is a registered trademark, and therefore events in this category are blocked from being held without our authorization».
Only, «since the event was already in such a state of maturation and already had support from entities such as the Algarve Tourism Region, the direction of Associação Almargem chose not to file a lawsuit against this entity».
Faced with this position, Algarve Trail Running told the Sul Informação that Almargem was «the first entity to be contacted and involved in this process, on 25 September 2016. We have been planning this race for over two years, which takes place in 90% of the Via Algarviana. We could not have not contacted the management entity».
«Despite being a pedestrian path for public use and financed by public entities, the organization of ALUT has always had the greatest consideration and respect for the work carried out by the entity that manages the infrastructure», he adds.
According to ATR, it was Almargem that «did not show willingness to collaborate constructively. Almargem's non-involvement could not compromise the event, which is a unique opportunity to promote our region from a different angle than usual, focusing on the interior and its potential».
The competition, which started in Alcoutim, on November 30th, and ends this Sunday, near Cabo de São Vicente, in Vila do Bispo, brings together 60 athletes from 6 nationalities to cover, in 72 hours, the approximately 300 kilometers of the Via the Algarve.
Even without Almargem's support, the organization says that the competition is held "with a great deal of help from volunteers and the local population", achieving "a fantastic involvement and unity".
«Here the Parish Council presidents have a fundamental role. The promotion, support in the organization of the event, involvement at the local level, is mainly from the Parish Councils and local sports and cultural associations in the inland villages, who find here an opportunity for visibility and prominence that the beaches and the sea almost have. it always steals from them», he adds.
Another of the complaints made by Almargem is that it was not accepted that part of the registration fee would revert to an eco-tax that would serve to maintain the signage on the Via Algarviana.
«At the meeting that Almargem's board held with the aforementioned association, we suggested that, of the registration fee charged to athletes (200 to 250 euros), 5% of this amount should be converted into an eco-rate that would be used to maintain the signage on the Via Algarviana», explains, in detail, the environmental association.
But Algarve Trail Running «found that value, 10 euros, high, and that this proposal would not make any sense. The commitment of having a contribution to revert to the Via Algarviana, a common practice in other countries where events of this nature take place, would be, for us, a demonstration of the seriousness of the race, concerned with the infrastructure in question», he adds.
The event's organizers confirm the refusal, adding that they were proposed to give “12,5 euros of the entry fee, which for us, as a non-profit organization, was unaffordable. This event has a budget of 60 thousand euros and giving part of the registration fee in a first edition would compromise the event's viability».
However, according to Algarve Trail Running, «from the beginning, and as agreed with Almargem itself, in all media and with athletes, it was broadcast and encouraged to actively and directly contribute to Almargem with a budget for the management of the Via Algarviana”.
Almargem also used the same communication, sent to the partners, to demarcate itself from any problems that occur during the race.
«Given the hardness of the race and the enormous associated logistics so that everything runs in accordance with, and for not having guarantees that everything is properly prepared, Almargem makes it clear that it has nothing to do with the event and in case it happens some problem with the competition at the level of the athletes», affirmed the association.
Problems that the Algarve Trail Running team believes will not happen, as they say they have the «experience and knowledge of the terrain to ensure safe conditions during the race».
«We want ALUT to be also, and alongside the other competitions we organize, a reference event on the world calendar. We want to position ALUT in the line of competitions of equal distance, difficulty and quality that take place all over the world, with particular emphasis in the United States. The success of this edition will dictate the bet», they concluded.
Comments