It is the «only night half marathon in the country» and, although it is only going to its second edition, it is already one of the «most attended» races in the south of the Tagus. The Half Marathon H20 goes out on the road this Saturday, March 24, when it's 18:15 pm, and will connect to the beach at Faro to Jardim Manuel Bivar, in the capital of the Algarve, for a total of 21 kilometres.
For this edition, there is great news: the fact that the race, which was presented to the public this Thursday, March 22, is approved by the Portuguese Athletics Federation, and is included in the national half marathon calendar.
In the future, the objective is to put the competition on the international calendar, if possible in the 3rd edition, revealed Jorge Santos, president of the Algarve Athletics Association, at the presentation of “H20”.
For now, it is certain that this year, in addition to the half marathon, there will be a shorter route, of 10 kilometers, as is customary in this type of competition.
In both, the match will be at Praia de Faro, passing the route through Vale das Almas, University of Algarve, Forum Algarve, Teatro das Figuras, Sé de Faro and Manuel Bivar Garden. Here, the mini marathon will end, while the half marathon will continue towards the Municipal Market, Library, Court, also ending at Jardim Manuel Bivar.
The choice of this route aimed to take advantage of the «richness» of the characteristics of the municipality, said Paulo Gouveia da Costa, chairman of the Board of Directors of Fagar, one of the organizers of the race, together with the Chamber of Faro and the Algarve Athletics Association.
«We have a county next to the Ria Formosa and the fact that this is an environmental competition led us to design the competition starting at Praia de Faro, benefiting from all its splendor at sunset», he explained, in the presentation of the proof. In addition, the half marathon also passes through a "countryside" and an "urban" zone.
In terms of participants, registration is already closed and there is a record: 684, against 500 in the 1st edition. The competition is sponsored by Rosa Mota, Olympic champion, Ana Dias, also an Olympic athlete and Farense, and Ezequiel Canário, the legendary cross-country champion, who also participated in the Olympic Games.
As for the environmental concern, which is also at the base of the test, it is manifested, for example, in the elimination of plastic, with the use of drinking glasses, at the filling stations, which will total six. Areas of the route were also improved in terms of lighting and signage, and the goal area is bigger, including activities for the youngest.
Rogério Bacalhau, president of the Chamber of Faro, praised the "great success" that the competition had last year, when it debuted, as well as the "a lot of preparation work" for the new edition.
And not even the forecast of light showers for this Saturday dampens the expectation of success of the aedile. "No athlete will stop running due to some drops," he said, between laughs.
What there will be, and that's for sure, are traffic constraints. Even so, guaranteed Paulo Gouveia da Costa, "we organized the route very well, in good time, and we are already disclosing alternative routes so that the resident population can adapt".
“It's a test that brings notoriety and excitement to economic activity. If half marathons are held in Boston and Paris, we will also be able to do one here, which is well received by the population, as it has been”, he concluded.
Photos: Fabiana Saboya | Sul Informação
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