Laufen-in-Koeln >> Marathon und Ultraläufe >> Deutschland >> Köln-Marathon >> Artikel 14.03.2006

Die Kooperation zwischen dem KölnMarathon und KölnTourismus soll ja insbesondere der Internationalisierung dieses Laufspektakels dienen. Daher freut man sich seitens KölnTourismus nun, die erste ins englisch übersetzte Presseinformation des Marathon-Büros zu präsentieren:
 

A good atmosphere, fun and top sporting performances
 
COLOGNE. 42,195 metres through the Cologne city centre. Approx. 20,000 participants - runners, skaters, hand bikers, pupils - , 500,000 enthusiastic spectators, costumes, Samba do Brazil, shrill sounding whistles, drums, colourful goings on – that is the marathon in Cologne, a very special experience for the young and people who have remained young at heart!
It is the magnificent atmosphere along the Cologne city marathon route, which drives the athletes onwards to achieve top performances, it is the struggle with themselves which makes enormous demands upon the willpower of each sportsman and woman, it is the tremendous experience that there are neither social nor territorial boundaries in sport, it is the relief and the feelings of joy when they reach the finishing line in front of the Cologne trade fair halls, which ensure that the athletes forget all the stresses and strains that they have been through. There can be no doubts that hardly any other sportsÂ’ event in North Rhine Westphalia is characterised by so many emotions as the Ford Cologne Marathon.

The marathon bug
 
The first marathon run through the city of the cathedral city over the classical distance of 26.2 miles in 1997 instantly became one of the most popular and largest marathon events in Germany with approx. 12,000 participants. The people of Cologne were also cheeky and innovative right from the start: It was the first major event organiser to develop the concept of a joint running and skating event and sent runners and skaters off on the same route one after the other. At the same time 42 music bands extending across the 42 kilometre route pumped up the volume for the participants and the spectators. These impulses became established and now constitute the quality standards of all the major German marathon events.
Cologne was also the first major marathon event to focus upon the hobby runner target group that run the marathon in a time of between four and six hours. The message to go with the event was clear and unambiguous: Everyone can do it!
Supported by various learning and training programmes Cologne also acquired more debutant marathon runners than any other event organiser in the past and you might well say: Cologne created the “The marathon bug”!

Marathon without boundaries
 
Runners, skaters and hand bikers from 51 nations, including Japan, the United States and Australia, ensured that 2005 was an even more colourful event on the streets of Cologne. A route that has been constantly improved, the professional logistics at the Koelnmesse (Cologne trade fair) and the superb views of, and insights into, the cathedral city ensure each and every year that the Cologne marathon is one of the most attractive sporting events in Germany. Combined with the numerous sights, which the city on the Rhine that is so rich in tradition has to offer, the marathon is a good occasion to pay Cologne and the Rhineland a visit.

The whole city of Cologne is running
 
Sport will be the dominating feature of 2006 - and not just in a footballing sense. The tenth Ford Cologne Marathon will be on the agenda on 8 October following the World Cup in the summer. An anniversary year, which will hold a lot of innovations, surprises and initiatives in store, even before the actual event in October. The motto will then be “Cologne in Motion” on 7/8 October – a running weekend for the whole family with offers for hobby sportsmen and women as well as professionals, for the youngest children and for all people who still feel young enough to simply take part in one of the many events. Regardless of whether it is the KölschWalk, the kids run, the school marathon, the panorama run, “Skate&Run Cologne”, or whether it be the half marathon, the inline marathon or the classic marathon distance, here everyone will find an event in the event that is tailor made to their individual needs.

Start them young...
 
The marathon in Cologne provides a good opportunity for the youngsters to become infected with the running bug. In 1999 pupils from Cologne and the surrounding areas were able to compete with one another in a relay race along the Cologne city marathon route for the first time. The race that started with approx. 40 schools has now gone on to become a real mass movement. 415 schools with teams of seven pupils took part in the event in 2005. A lot of those pupils who were involved in the first race are now passionate marathon runners. The popularity of the Cologne pupils’ run, which has borne the name of "RheinEnergie Schulmarathon Köln” since 2005, now extends well beyond Germany’s national boundaries. Schools from France, England, Switzerland and Poland have now been taking part in the event for the past two years.



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Autor und Copyright: KölnTourismus GmbH