This year’s RunCzech running series will start in the best way possible. The Prague Half Marathon is taking Saturday with 12,000 people registered. The capacity is thus completely filled. The organizers and runners hope for not rainy weather on the Saturday morning. “There shouldn’t be such freezing conditions as last year. If it doesn’t rain, we could see very fast times,” said Tomas Mirovsky from the organizing company RunCzech. The Kenyan Benard Kimeli or Irine Jepchumba Kimais, who set a great time of 1:04:37 in Barcelona, belong to the main favourites this year. Czech top runners will be also present, led by Jiří Homoláč or Moira Stewart. The race will be broadcasted by CT Sport or can be watched via Pulse.tv streaming.
Last year at the press conference, African athletes declared the cool weather was better than the heat and they were looking forward to the popular route through the centre of Prague. But on the very race day, temperatures slightly above zero were joined by snowfall and freezing wind. “The wind was the worst last year. I hope that the weather will be better than last time this Saturday,” said Benard Kimeli who will attack his third victory at the Prague Half Marathon. “But if it doesn’t rain too much and it’s not too cold, I’m confident of reaching a nice time,” added the experienced Kenyan, who ran 59:07 in 2019.
The women’s performance at the Prague Half Marathon will also be intensively watched this year. The current star of the running world is the Kenyan Irine Jepchumba Kimais who has been showing great performances. “I have no problem with the cold weather. I believe I could also run around one hour and four minutes in Prague. I will do my best for that,” Kimais set a clear goal. Moira Stewart, the holder of the best Czech half marathon time so far, plans to stick to her as much as possible. “The Prague Half Marathon is one of the highlights for me. It would be great to start the athletic season by breaking the national record. I hope that the atmosphere and great competitors will motivate me,” added the elite Czech athlete.
The Prague Half Marathon has been sold out for several weeks, which only proves the great interest of people in running and active lifestyle. Moreover, these events are important for cities where they attract not only athletes but also their families to hotels and restaurants. “In developed European countries, it is common for these sporting events to be very well supported. They bring many benefits – both economic and health ones, as citizens get attracted to a healthy lifestyle said Ondřej Šebek, Chairman of the National Sports Agency.
Those interested in the half marathon distance do not have to be dissapointed, if they miss the race on Saturday, as the traditional Prague International Marathon will take place in Prague at the beginning of May. It will be possible to participate in the 2Run category, i.e. each of the two runners will cover 21 kilometres. “Runners who could not make it to the start of the Prague Half Marathon due to capacity reasons were recommended to take part in the Prague Marathon in pairs. We have been seeing a great interest there as well,” added the main organiser Mirovský. The Prague Half Marathon will include a charity event for Světluška, the charity foundation of the czech radio Český rozhlas. The race will start at 10:00 a.m. at the Rudolfinum in Prague.
