Weekend of festivities planned for Marathon 2010

Friday, June 11, 2010

Weekend of festivities planned for Marathon 2010

By Ailbhe Gillespie

The 2010 Longford Marathon was launched in St Christopher's last Thursday night and this year the event has transformed into a weekend long festival for local athletes and visitors alike.
Speaking at the event Fr Ciaran McGovern said: "There will be a 5km event on Friday (August 27), on Saturday there will be athletics for kids in St Mel's College and there will be music on throughout the weekend. On Sunday (August 29) we will hold our marathon as well as a half marathon and a relay. It's really shaping up to be a fine weekend of atheltics and socialising.

The Newtownforbes priest, who is well known for his love of running, then told the large crowd in St Christopher's that there have been three major developments in the marathon since 2009.

"We are proud to announce that Pat the Baker has become our new sponsor. It's great to have this event recognised by such a big brand and I love the connection between healthy food and exercise. We can all benefit from this marriage.

"Our second development is that we have become involved with the Niall Mellon Trust. The group are using the Longford Marathon as a fund-raiser and our image is enhanced by our association with them. The third development is of course the re-establishment of the Longford Athletic Club."

He then paid a special tribute to the man he said was responsible for the re-emergence of the athletics club, Liam Fenelon. He also thanked Joe Duffy Motors, Kane's Travel, Run Republic and Kiernan Structural Steele for their continued sponsorship of the event and reminded the audience that the marathon is once again associated with St Christopher's. "We gain too from the great help they give us", he said.

Fr McGovern concluded his speech by saying: "Our motto for the Longford Marathon is that we are the friendly marathon in the heart of Ireland. It's important we don't lose sight of that....We want people to enjoy the event and then come back again the following year.

"My hope is that next year, on our tenth anniversary, we will become part of a group called AIMS – the Association of International Marathons and Distance Running. We could be on their website with the likes of the New York and Boston Marathons - all the great marathons and road races."

Michael Meaney from Pat the Baker then addressed the crowd. "We are delighted to be sponsoring an event in our home county. We started off as a small family run business and now we employ six hundred workers nationwide.

"The marathon is similar in that its in its infancy now but I believe in years to come it will become a very prestigious event and hopefully Pat the Baker will still be involved", he said.

Two representatives from the Niall Mellon Trust also spoke at the launch saying that an event like the Longford Marathon can inspire an individual to make a huge difference to the people of South Africa through fund-raising activities.

The Co Mayor Peggy Nolan praised the marathon saying that everyone who crosses the finish line of the Longford Marathon is always met by a friendly face and vows to return the following year.

The event was concluded with a few words from marathon expert Liam Fenelon who said: "We hope that the marathon will be even bigger and better this year. I know there is lots of opposition but I think we can fight it off."

He also appealed for more volunteers to come forward and help out with the marathon and also with the Longford Athletics Club.

For further information on the Longford Marathon log onto www.longfordmarathon.com

Source: Longford Leader