ATHLETICS
BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
THE Traralgon Marathon and Running Festival returns for its 58th edition this Sunday (June 1), with many in the weeks and months in advancing circling it on their calendar with much anticipation.
This year’s event will open at a different venue, with participants starting and ending at Glengarry Football-Netball Club.
Runners will still traverse up the Gippsland Plains Rail Trail for a country course to Toongabbie, with half-marathon runners going up and back between the two towns, while those completing the full 42.2 kilometres make the trip four times to and from.
Traralgon Harriers President, Phill Mayer is ready for another successful outing, which has already seen the half-marathon at capacity weeks in advance and only a few spots remaining for the 10km run and marathon itself.
“It’s actually really exciting, the 58th running of the event. It’s the longest running event in Australia,” he said.
“Huge demand and we lifted capacity this year, there’s been a really good response and we’re really excited to run another fantastic event for the club and the region.”
Mirroring what the Traralgon Harriers sets out to represent, while the event does attract elite-level runners due to its uniqueness with a flat course that is easier on runner’s feet, anyone and everyone is welcome to enter regardless of ability.
“The event is definitely designed for newer runners and for local runners and for amateur runners to come along and run,” Mayer said.
“Our second-year race director Desley Gray has worked really hard to be inclusive and to market things towards those sort of middle-of-the-road runners, people who really want to give it a crack.
“We call ourselves the ‘Country Marathon’, it’s a welcoming marathon.
“We’ve got some top-end runners, there’s no doubt about that, but it’s going to be the stories of those runners who are running their first event that are going to be really special.”
One such runner that sits as one of the favourites to cross the finish line first includes previous two-time Traralgon Marathon winner Dion Finocchiaro competing for the first time in more than a decade.
“He’s a fantastic guy, super fit, he’s going to do a magnificent time – I think people are going to be chasing him,” Mayer said.
After a number of years with the event being held at De Grandi’s Winery, Traralgon East and before that at the Traralgon Foootball-Netball Club, the new central location in Glengarry offers a fresh environment for spectators and easement on the many volunteers required to make the event run smoothly.
“One of the considerations is for spectators, also there’s less road crossings, so it reduces traffic management,” Mayer said.
“Parking was another issue, we basically outgrew the Traralgon Winery due to the parking and parking demands.
“Glengarry FNC has got a really wonderful group of volunteers, the club’s behind the event as well, so they’ll be directing traffic, directing parking and providing all the marshalling for that… it’s basically a paring with the Glengarry FNC.”
Runners will even get to finish with a lap around the football ground, which Mayer compared (in smaller size) to circling the MCG during the Melbourne Marathon.
A carb loading dinner will also be held this Saturday night from 6pm at Dal Mondo Restaurant, Traralgon, as a pre-cursor to Sunday’s proceedings.
The pre-event is open to the public and features three fabulous guest speakers.
Nikki Wynd was the first Australia to win the prestigious Badwater 135 Ultra Marathon (217km race across Death Valley) and has over a decade’s worth of experience in world-class ultra-running.
Australian marathon legend Rick Patzold has completed a ludicrous 422 marathons since he began in 2001 and holds the distinction as the only Australian to go sub-4 more than 200 times.
Motivational speaker Kylie Mayne has completed six World Major Marathons and will be supporting the Traralgon Marathon on the day as the 2:10 half-marathon pacer.
The Traralgon Marathon launches at 8am from Glengarry FNC with the half-marathon following at 9am and 10km run at 10am this Sunday.
