16.07.2008

Gold Coast Airport Marathon eclipses 20,000 in on its 30th birthday

The 2008 Gold Coast Airport Marathon celebrated its 30th year with record numbers, great elite racing, jubilant finishers of all ages and abilities, plenty of colour and crowds, and some amazing stories.

The final entry total was 21,010 participants across all the events on race day – Gold Coast Airport Marathon, Asics Half Marathon, Southern Cross University 10km Run, Gold Coast Bulletin 7.5km Walk, 4km Junior Dash and 2.25km Junior Dash - with more than 18,850 making it to the finish line.

A reasonably unfancied Japanese runner and a 37-year-old mother from New Zealand took the men’s and women’s spoils at the 30th annual marathon which drew a record number of 21,001 people.

Kazuo Ietani (2:14:17) and Shireen Crumpton (2:38:16) beat the marathon record field of 3,935 runners to claim their respective victories.

For Osaka-based Ietani it was a back up of sorts to his fellow countryman Toyokazu Yoshimura’s 2007 victory.

Crumpton’s win saw her become the first female in over two decades to become a repeat winner of the 42.195km Gold Coast event, previously claiming victory in 2003.

Three-time Sydney Marathon winner Julius Maritim (2:15:19) and fellow Keyan Joel Kiplimo Kemboi (2:17:05) filled the minor men’s places while Queenslander Rina Hill (2:45:59) and Roxie Schmidt from Moffat Beach Queensland (2:47:56) followed Crumpton over the line in the womens’ race.

Ietani’s win was his first in six attempts over the full marathon distance.

The Gold Coast Airport Marathon hosted several championships this year, including the Oceania Marathon and Half Marathon Championships, with the following athletes being crowned the 2008 champions:

Oceania Marathon Championships:

Male Champion - Rowan Walker (Victoria) – 02:19:36

Female Champion - Shireen Crumpton (New Zealand) – 02:38:16

Oceania Half Marathon Championships:

Male Champion - Michael Shelley (Queensland) – 01:02:41

Female Champion - Rowan Baird (New Zealand) – 01:14:01

Queensland Marathon Championships:

Male Champion - Mathew Skate (Mitchelton) – 02:35:02

Female Champion - Rina Hill (Samford Valley) – 02:45:59

Australian Defence Marathon Championships:

Male Champion - Rowan Walker (Victoria) – 02:19:36

Female Champion - Lisa Flint (Queensland) – 02:49:23

Queensland Masters Athletics Marathon Championships:

Male Champion – Peter Hunt (Toowoomba) - 02:50:55

Female Champion – Glenda Banaghan (Toowong) - 02:58:09

Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association Half Marathon Championships:

Male Champion – Brett McArthur (Victoria) - 00:51:02

 Five people were inducted into the 20 Year Club this year; having participated in the same event twenty times throughout the history of the event.  In the Marathon, they were Allan Devine from Brisbane and Geoffrey Williams from Upper Caboolture. In the Half Marathon, Burt Beasley from Kingston ACT, Elaine Robertson from Coorparoo and Robert Lofthouse from Kedron took the honour.

This year’s Corporate Teams Challenge proved a major success with more than 50 teams entering. The prize for the Largest Team was awarded to Ramsay Health with 154 participants. The Most Kilometres Travelled went to Gold Coast City Council who accumulated 2,026km. The Best Team Spirit was shown by Mission Australia.

In the Media Challenge, Michael Whiting from Quest Community Newspapers was the 2008 victor with an overall finishing position of 21st in the Southern Cross University 10km Run for men. Last year’s media winner Scott Beveridge finished runner-up to Michael with his 150th place in the men’s 10km Run.

In other interesting results:

The youngest entrant in the field, Patrick Bognar from Newcastle, who turned five on race day, finished 423rd in the 2.25km Junior Dash while the oldest entrant in the field, Joy Ward from Ipswich, turned 87 on race day and finished 6,267th in the Asics Half Marathon in 3:59:26.

From across the Tasman, New Zealander Margaret Cribbens attended the event with more than fifty members of the Auckland YMCA Club to celebrate her 80th year. Margaret ran the full marathon and finished 3,658th overall in a time of 7:09:02 – finishing within the cut off time.

The inaugural winner of the Gold Coast Marathon in 1979 was Eric Sigmont. Eric returned for the event’s 30th year and clocked 3:57:11 at age 59.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh was not only in attendance but completed the Asics Half Marathon in 2:26:33, while new Gold Coast Tourism CEO Martin Winter finished that event in 1:56:43.

Winner of the Gold Coast Airport Marathon Shireen Crumpton, from New Zealand, became the first repeat female victor of the marathon in 22 years. Shireen also won in 2003, and it hasn’t been since Margaret Reddan’s win in 1986 that a female has won in more than one year.

This year’s event took the number of finishers in the 30-year history of the event to almost 200,000.

Erin Sprague, who was attempting a Guinness World Record to become the youngest woman to complete a marathon on all seven continents, crossed the line in the 42.195km race in 3:55:55.

The 2009 Gold Coast Airport Marathon will be held on Sunday 5 July, and will be staged from the redeveloped Southport Broadwater Events Parklands.

goldcoastmarathon.com.au

Article with thanks to Queensland Events