Some celebrated African athletes are set to partake in a worldwide virtual team relay marathon in June.
The likes of Eliud Kipchoge, Kenenisa Bekele, Joshua Cheptegei and Geoffrey Kamworor will take part in the marathon.
The historic event is scheduled to come on between June 6 and 7, and is open to all athletics fans across the world who are 18 and above.
Dubbed “MA RA TH ON”, the virtual team relay marathon is being organised by NN Running Team.
This is probably the first virtual sporting event since the Coronavirus pandemic hit the world, with virtual musical concerts already stealing the lead.
The great Eliud Kipchoge began running competitively in the year 2003, having been inspired by his Coach, an athlete himself.
— Sport Africa (@GoalAfrica1) May 23, 2020
16 years later (2019) ,he became the 1st man to run a marathon in under 2 Hours. pic.twitter.com/ojs9B0KTPX
Participants from across the world will form a team of four to cover the stipulated 10.5km marathon distance.
World marathon record holder Kipchoge described the virtual marathon as a “wonderful initiative” and said he is really looking forward to it.
“I can say that myself and my teammates are really looking forward to join the relay in this wonderful initiative,” he noted, as quoted by the BBC.
“It has been an unusual time whereby all runners had to readjust their plans after having prepared well towards their own goals for this past spring season.
#Ethiopia|n Kenenisa Bekele wins the Berlin marathon today with the second fastest time in history (02:01:41). Kenenisa misses the world record by 2 seconds.
— Fisseha Tegegn (@Shewaye_Tagel) September 29, 2019
Monumental effort and incredible achievement by the #Ethiopian distance running legend. pic.twitter.com/rfktGMm87z
“We all look forward to a positive future and I believe that this a great first step in that direction. Marathon is a sport whereby elite athletes and fun runners are actually all racing in the same race. It’s what makes our sport unique and I find the essence of this to be beautiful.”
Meanwhile, the director of the NN Running Team, Jos Hermens, said the virtual marathon is meant to bring athletes and fans together in a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has grounded the competitions.
