Run Barbados

BALLANTYNE RUNS AWAY WITH POWERADE MARATHON
Publication Date: 1/6/2009

Pamenos Ballantyne, ran away with the top prize in the Powerade Marathon held last Sunday December 7. In an emphatic come-from-behind finish, Ballantyne outpaced Kenyan, Nuriithi Njugun, and last year’s winner, Victor Ledger, to complete the race in time of 2:25:15.

Other big winners over the weekend were Robert Kiprotich Letti, who copped the top spots in both the Scotiabank iN Fo’ Life Half Marathon in a time of 1:08:07 and Nature Valley 10K in 29:57 (www.chiptimeresults.com).

At a post mortem event held on Tuesday December 9, 2008, the planning committee performed a SWOT analysis of the entire weekend of events and decided that overall the event was on trajectory of growth with some areas for further improvement.

Sports Tourism Manager, Gregory Armstrong, added that the highlight of the just concluded Series was signing Powerade as the official title sponsor; a partnership that he believes will continue to reap dividends for both entities.

Some of the other areas that were deemed successfully handled were the traffic management and general race management along the course, in conjunction with the Royal Barbados Police Force; the local media coverage and advertising; and the Divi Southwinds Pasta Party.

Areas earmarked for closer attention in time for the December 4-6, 2009 edition include having a more targeted marketing strategy across key international cities; faster updating of the official website, RunBarbados.org, including the availability of customized travel packages and opportunities for early registration; and the creation of a manual will be created to ensure effective logistics management.

In addition, the committee has pledged its commitment to strengthening relations with all key stakeholders, especially local participants, sponsors, the media and all suppliers.

Run Barbados adds new events to fill the needs of all Runners in the Run Barbados Series.

This year events have been added to the Run Barbados Schedule to increase not only the number of participants but those who can participate.

Friday Night Midnight Mile and international Friendship Run - We are encouraging everyone to come out and run or walk a mile with all of the competitors in Run Barbados and welcome everyone to the island. This is the chance to start the weekend and show everyone why The Run Barbados slogan is "Come for the Run , Stay for the Fun".

Saturday - A 3 kilometer run has been added to the already exciting 10k run. This run will feature school children to give them the opportunity to particpate on the same routes and cross the same finish line as some of the best runners in the world.

Sunday - A 5K run has been added to the Marathon and Half Marathon for Sunday morning for those who like shorter distances and for those who are not quite ready to tackle the longer distance but want to be part of this great event.

The Barbados Challenge - For those who feel one race is not enough.

Run three of the following events and receive a special commemorative medal. Four Medals Three Events.

Gold Medal – Run the Mile Friday , 10k Saturday, and the Marathon Sunday

Silver Medal – Run the Mile Friday,10k Saturday, and the Half Marathon Sunday

Bronze Medal – Run the Mile Friday, 10k Saturday and the 5k on Sunday