The Girona Greenways Consortium, a body belonging to the Regional Council of Girona, held the 1st Marathon and Half Marathon of the Girona Greenways. Participation in the trial, that looks set to become an annual event, was a success, with 386 runners taking part in the Marathon that started from Girona and finished in Sant Feliu de Guíxols, and 396 participants in the Half Marathon that went from the town of Llagostera to the same finishing point in Sant Feliu. The entire route of the trial followed the Narrow-Gauge Railway Route which no doubt contributed to the successful turnout.

The bitterly cold weather that accompanied the participants throughout the whole race did not stop the event from going ahead. The athlete Hugo Figueras from Fondistes Cervera, overall winner of the 1st Greenways Marathon and winner of the under 40s category, finished the race in 2h 40:32. In the Half Marathon, the overall winner and winner of the under 40s category was Ricard Fernàndez from Canet Race, with a time of 1h 15:01. Michelle Bartels was the first woman to finish the Marathon and winner of the under 50s category with a time of 3h 11:02, while Paquita Giménez was classified first in the women’s category of the Half Marathon and under 50s with a time of 1h 29:37.

A MARATHON WITH DIFFERENT CHALLENGES
The marathon athlete Paris Canals Rovira, who completed the Marathon in 3h 48:27, joined the start of the race in Girona when he had already been running for 80 kilometres, after having started running from Montornès del Vallès in the early hours of the morning. This feat means that he completed a total of 126,585 kilometres – 3 marathons in a row – in less than 12 hours.

The Greenways Consortium has always been committed to equality and to the accessibility of its routes. Participants in the trial included veteran runners such as 75 year old Sadurní Planas Quintana, who completed the Half Marathon in 2h 45:32, 62 year old Jordi Banal Llahó, who completed the Marathon in 3h 41:31, and Francisco Javier Delgado, the Spanish winner of the State Championships for the blind organised by ONCE (1998), who also participated in the Marathon and finished with a time of 3h 58:18, showing that the Marathon is an inclusive event for all.

SECOND EDITION ANNOUNCED FOR 2014
The prize giving ceremony for each category was held in front of the Tinglado building in Sant Feliu de Guíxols, next to the finishing point. The overall winners were presented with their awards by Miquel Calm, Chairman of the Greenways Consortium and Vice President of the Regional Council of Girona, together with Joan Alfons Albó, mayor of Sant Feliu, and Josep Pujols, Territorial Delegate for Sport of the Government of Catalonia. Awards were also presented to the category winners by Josep M. Vidal, mayor of Llambilles, and Magdalena Lupiáñez and Verónica Lahoya, Councillors for Sport and Social Services.

To end the day, Miquel Calm took the opportunity to congratulate all those who had participated in the event for taking part and for their spirit of achievement. A special mention was given to the Town Councils who made the race possible, the Government of Catalonia, the companies who helped out with the trials and the organisers and volunteers who withstood temperatures below 0.

(Complete note in pdf added, with list of winners!)