Marathon of Mexico City celebrates its 30th anniversary edition on 2 September

The International Marathon of Mexico City celebrates its 30th anniversary edition on 2 September writes Anatol Alvarez Ibarra. It is one of the most established marathons of South America, and this year 20,000 runners are expected to take part over all events – half of them in the Marathon itself.

The race now heralds an iconic day for the people of Mexico City. The first edition took place in 1983 attracting 2000 runners – but by the very next year numbers were already up to 10,000.

The first Marathon featured the participation of the Tarahumara Indians, running for the first time in an international Marathon. Tarahumara, or Raramuri as they call themselves, are native Indians of Chihuahua state in the north of Mexico. In Tarahumara dialect the world Raramuri comes from the roots rara (foot) and muri (run), and means foot-runners.

The Taraumara have an ancient running tradition, moving from one place to another to attend traditional festivities by running very long distances. When one of the Raramuri runners got to the Marathon finish line he kept on running to complete another 42km – and all this at 2200m altitude. In the 1984 Marathon, the Raramuri made their own leather sandals to wear during the competition.

The race started within the Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez located near to the Airport and finished at the central park downtown. Among the top Mexican runners, was Rodolfo Gómez, who had placed highly in the Tokyo, New York, London and Athens Marathons, and he went on to win the Mexico City International Marathon.

The race is organized by the Institute of Sport, which has made improvements year by year to make the Marathon among the foremost in the world. This year the XXXth edition will be the biggest yet, including a concert in the Zócalo of Mexico City and a variety of incentives and surprises for the runners.

2012 is the last year of Mexico City’s Governor Marcelo Ebrard’s administration, so celebrating in style was necessity. “We want this edition to be the most memorable in history; to achieve this we have strengthened both the local and the international entries”, said the Institute of Sport’s director, Francisco Javier López Ortíz.

Prize money has been increased and bonuses for a course record upgraded (2:12:11 for men and 2:38:24 for women). The mass runners will be recorded at points along the course and official certificates offered along with a special commemorative medal and T-shirt.

The start and finish will be at 20th November street and the Zócalo (central square) by City Hall, the course will pass by all the most emblematic and historic sights of the city.

Source: AIMSworldrunning.org