The city of Port Harcourt, the Capital of Rivers state, is set to hold the maiden Rivers State International Marathon event on the 1st of June, 2024.
Both domestic and foreign athletes will be in attendance as fans are expected to be entertained by top musicians and a fusion of a beautiful carnival that will showcase the rich cultural heritage of the state.
The Chairman Media and Publicity sub committee of the event, Idah Peterside, during a press briefing held on Friday, said the Marathon event is aimed at identifying Rivers state with unique sporting activities.
“The Marathon is upon us now. It is our first international Rivers Marathon. We want to showcase the beauty of Rivers state. Our state is known for oil and Bòle, but this time, we want to shift the focus to sports. Especially, unique sports that most times we see on television.” The former Super Eagles goalkeeper noted.
Meanwhile, one of the coordinators of the event, Femi Abegunde, says the Marathon event will boost economic activities in Rivers state.
“We can’t overemphasize the importance of social enterprise. This Marathon event offers Rivers state a lot of commerce on a short term and a lot of investments in the long term.” Abegunde assured.
“We’re excited that the amazing, super-focused governor of our dear state, saw through our lens, the need to expand the capacity of local businesses in the state. I don’t think there’s any thing at this stage, at this level, in the last ten years in Rivers state.
“But what we are bringing tomorrow is nothing but excellence. We’ve been working tirelessly on this since last year, so we didn’t just start two or three weeks ago. A lot of work has gone into this. As you can see, we’ll be having even elite athletes participating tomorrow.” The principal of Arch Raphael Limited concluded.
Take off point will be at Sharks Football Club Stadium at 7am, while the finishing point is at Yakubu Gowon Stadium, Port Harcourt.
The 1st Rivers International Marathon would be big with prizes as high as $10,000 for elite athletes (42 km race) and #5 million for domestic athletes.
There will also be a keep-fit segment of 5km from Shell Gate to Yakubu Gowon Stadium that is expected to get some dignitaries participating.
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