"All set" for the 5th International Marathon of Rhodes, on Sunday 29 April!

Everything is ready for the organization of the 5th Rhodes International Road Marathon, which will be held on Sunday 29 April, with the participation of thousands of runners, making it the biggest sporting event in the South Aegean.

At the "Best Western Plaza Hotel" the Organizing Committee presented the last details of the race, with the President of the Organizing Committee Mrs. Marietta Papavassiliou, Vice-Regional Head of Sports, Culture and Tourism, to emphasize:

"We are pleased to see, in its 5th year, that the Rhodes Marathon has been accepted not only by the people of Rhodes, but also by the friends of the running movement in Greece and abroad. We have exceeded 2700 runners, and the demand is such that we could reach a much higher number. All available places were filled by the registration deadline and we sold out!

The 5th Rhodes Marathon has runners from 38 countries, something that, with the exception of the Athens Marathon, no other marathon in Greece has ever achieved. Almost half of the athletes are from abroad which shows its international appeal. The numbers are,

MATHONIUS: 188

HALF-MARATHON: 306

10KM: 239

5KM: 1356

The response of the Dodecanese was also moving and we want to thank them for their participation. Since the beginning of the week we have been getting phone calls from people who want to run, but unfortunately we are unable to offer them new places. After this year's success we will work on this to create new places and next year we will welcome more people. We are evolving step by step, always aiming for a high quality and excellent event.

Now the Rhodes Marathon has gone through its childhood illnesses, has come of age and has created its own brand name internationally. We are investing in this brand name for the future so that the race can grow and attract more people from Greece and abroad, boosting tourist arrivals on the island, at a time when Rhodes is still not full of tourists.

For the first time, the Marathon will have a positive economic impact. We are committed to investing this surplus in the athletes of the Dodecanese, so that they will be given the opportunity to take part in great competitions in Greece and abroad.

As part of the steps we are taking to grow our race and open it to the international public, we will be twinning with the Larnaca Marathon on Saturday at 12 noon in a special event here in Rhodes as a delegation of the race will travel from Cyprus. The Larnaca Marathon was held last year for the first time with great success and through the partnership both sides will only benefit and you are all invited to this event.

We are particularly pleased to see the goal of linking the Rhodes Marathon with tourism taking shape.

As we have already announced, the initiative of the Ministry of Tourism with the Run For Tourism team will continue in Rhodes. After the classic Athens marathon, the team will run in our marathon as well. The Secretary General of Tourism, Euridiki Kourneta, the Secretary General of EOT, Mr. Konstantinos Tsegas, the Vice President of EOT, Mrs. Angeliki Chondromatidou, executives of the Directorate of Tourism and our Regional Authority, representatives of local authorities and bodies will take part. I would like to thank all those who responded to our invitation and especially the Ministry for accepting to continue this initiative in Rhodes.

Thanks to all our sponsors and supporters. Thank you to all the volunteers. Without them nothing would have been possible.

Finally, I would like to invite all Rhodians to come to the starting line of the Marathon on Sunday and take part in this great sporting celebration, even if they do not run. We should all be at the runners' side, to applaud and encourage them and to put out a strong image, with all the people of the island embracing the biggest sporting event of the South Aegean".

The following spoke next:

Vassilis Zekas, president of the Dodecanese SEGAS:

"The Rhodes Marathon, apart from the parallel races, the half marathon, the 10 and 5 km distances and the children's race, includes events dedicated to human contribution and cultural events. It highlights values such as contribution, solidarity, participation, fair play and competition, as they have been highlighted since Ancient Greece. It gives the opportunity to athletes and sportsmen of all ages, members of the running movement, primary, secondary and high school students to feel the joy of participation and movement. In addition to improving mental and physical health, it aims to promote true human relationships. It accepts participants from abroad and the rest of Greece. The excellent cooperation between the co-organizers, the Region, the municipality of Rhodes through the DOPAR and the EAS SEGAS Dodecanese and the participation of many bodies of the island such as EXP, mobilizes many clubs and teams. All of us are making every effort for a successful race that will be an unforgettable experience".

Stefanos Kyriazis, president of IOPAR:

"This effort is not the effort of one or two people. This is a cart that we all have to pull together. If we don't all try together to raise the bar higher, we're not going to get anywhere.

Registration stopped after the deadline. This fact confirms that society, youth, the sports world is looking for such major events. We have no choice but to continue to support these sporting activities. I thank the Region for the cooperation, the EAS SEGAS Dodecanese for the very good cooperation. Thank you and I wish you a good race".

Manda Facea, School Counsellor of Physical Education of the 1st & 2nd grade in Dodesos:

"The fact that the co-organisers want to involve education in the race is important. It proves that they care about all citizens, giving children from primary school age the opportunity to participate and have this unique experience. I tried to make the presence of education felt with the support of Mr. Vassilis Karagiannis as well as Mr. Papadomarkakis and Mr. N. Rapti as well as the school principals.

This effort had an impact. We started with 500 people, we increased the number to 600 and with great effort from the organizing committee and our president Mrs. Papavasiliou we reached 700 people. Think of the image of 700 children running around the square. I should also say that there is a great participation of students in the 5 and 10 km races. The children's race is dedicated to the celebration of World Volunteer Blood Donor Day. We will have a relay just before the start. Olympic champion Niki Xanthou, Paralympian Thanasis Barakas and the volunteer blood donation record holder Panagiotis Konstantakis will participate. The relay is organized in cooperation with the Voluntary Blood Donors Association of Rhodes, Agios Ephraim".

Dora Anastasiadis, Marketing Manager:

"Our marathon was embraced from the very first moment by major sponsors. Over 50% of the cost of the event is covered by sponsorships. We are therefore talking about big and strong sponsors. Not only for those who have been with us from the very first moment such as Adidas stores in Rhodes, H Hotels Group, Sheraton, Plaza Hotel that hosts us, but every year new and big sponsors are added every year. This year we had the pleasure of welcoming a large hotel group, Atrium Hotels who is a volunteer sponsor, DEDDIE, Interwetten. Of course thanks to the media, the support is exemplary.

I should also mention that every year, we invest in our visibility abroad. We use our contacts through SETE, EOT or personal contacts to invite major foreign media specializing in the field of sports holidays. This effort is starting to pay off. This effort has actually led to major tour operators such as TUI and LTUR selling our marathon. And this year we will have journalists from the Netherlands, Austria, Germany and many journalists from media in Athens. We try to make sure that all these people leave with the best impressions and are our best ambassadors."

Nikos Polias, Marathon Director:

"The efforts have paid off. We have entries from 38 countries. 255 runners from abroad will take part. The British stand out, with more than 50 entries, the Italians, the French, the French, the Poles, the Dutch, the Germans, the Estonians, the Turks, the Amricans and the list is long. To mention that the increase of foreign countries is 25% compared to the previous event, while the increase of foreign runners is more than 150%. We expect that this progress will not be exponential but linear. These runners will carry their experience into their circle. In the coming years we therefore expect to be in the pleasantly difficult position of having to manage many more people in all the events on the programme.

The preparation has gone very well. Although the weather is expected to be warm, we have made sure that there is sufficient water to ensure that the water supply and the athletes' food supply is what is needed for the marathon runners and the shorter distance runners.

Due to the increased tourist traffic, it would be advisable for residents to avoid travelling during the race and to respect the traffic police measures. It is very important to ensure safety on the route and not to complicate the work of the hundreds of volunteers who will accompany the various points.

The Rhodes Marathon is a truly great sporting event. We should all treat it as such so that it can continue its course unhindered.

It is equally important that the people of Rhodes come out along the route and applaud the athletes' effort".

Eleni Adamaki, coordinator:

"We urge Rhodians not to take their cars and go to Madraki in comfort. We have designated two parking lots. One at the "Callipatera" in Karakoneiro and one at the Ancient Stadium. Both will be guarded. We have arranged for mini-vans to transport passengers, which will depart from 9.30am and drop people off at the Republic Park. They will alternate every half hour. The last run from the park will be at 15:00".

Cleopatra Tsitsipa, secretary

"We are all a strong team We are doing our best to make sure that people enjoy the route and run safely and the spectators enjoy a nice spectacle".

Takis Michaelides, member

"I convey to you the greetings of the Deputy Minister of Shipping and Island Policy, Nektarios Santoriniou. I believe that the Rhodes Road Marathon is starting to grow for good and this makes us even more responsible. And not only us who are involved, but all Rhodians".

Gold sponsor of the Rhodes Marathon is this year again Adidas through its local store Adidas Rhodes and nominal sponsor of the race of 5 km. The Hotels collection. Also, the Aegean Airlines is the official aviation sponsor of the Rhodes Marathon while the Blue Star Ferries which is an official sponsor of ferry services, provides 50% discount for passengers and 30% discount for vehicles who will travel to Rhodes from Piraeus, Kos, Kalymnos, Leros and Syros.

Also on the website rhodesmarathon.gr you can find great offers and great discounts for accommodation in Rhodes, through the Marathon's partner hotels, such as Sheraton Rhodes Resort that supports the International Marathon as the main hospitality sponsor. Silver sponsor is TEN-T and sponsored by the hotels Atrium. Contact Sponsor of the 5th International Marathon of Rhodes is Nova.

Ο Marathon of Rhodes organized by the Region of South Aegean, the E.A.S. S.E.G.A.S. Dodecanese, Him IOPAR of the Municipality of Rhodes and with the support of the Rhodes Hotel Association. It is held under the auspices of Greek Tourism Organisation and has been included in the official calendar of the AIMS.