Smiles and PBs all around at 2017 OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO

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    • OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO

    The 11th  OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO took place for the first time this year over two days (Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th March) and saw a record breaking number of 15,000 runners from many nationalities on the start line of the various races.

    The weekend was kicked off with the 1st ever Cyprus Running Community Forum at Cyprus University of Technology on Friday 17th March, before over 8,000 runners were toeing the start line of Cyprus’ biggest corporate event, the PrimeTel 5K Corporate Race (right) which set off at 9am on Saturday morning. As always, the PrimeTel 5K Corporate Race inspired some healthy rivalry among local businesses and there was a great sense of team spirit at this much-loved event. BookYourWeddingDay.com claimed the win in the PrimeTel 5K Corporate Race, ahead of Enjoy Life – Salveo Gym and Remedica.

    Following on from the Corporate Race was the 1K Andrey and Julia Dashin’s Foundation Youth Race at 11am. A brilliant opportunity for young runners between 6 to 16 years to join in the fun, the Youth Race meant families of all ages could enjoy Cyprus’ largest sporting event, and it was a great precursor to the Petrolina Energy Day kicking off at midday in the Sponsor Village.

    Saturday night then saw many marathoners and half marathoners gather for a pasta party hosted by the event organisers, which was a great chance to meet other runners and fuel the body ready for race day.

    Runners were lining up at the start line of the OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO, Half Marathon, the Petrolina 10K Energy Race and the 5K City Race at 7am on Sunday morning to #RunLimassol, under clear blue skies and 2017 OPAP Limassol Marathon GSOparallel to the glittering Mediterranean sea.

    Kenyan runner Edwin Kiprop Kiyeng (right) dominated over the marathon distance and won the 2017 OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO in a time of 02:15:04, claiming a cash prize of €2,000. Fellow Kenyan Wycliffe Kip Biwot was the runner up in a time of 02:15:40, before Pavel Borodin from Cyprus took third place in 02:38:42 after a 23 minute gap.

    Gladys Jepkurui Biwott from Kenya secured the women’s title as well as the €2,000 cash prize in 02:40:41, ahead of Cypriot runner Anna Handzlik Dagmara who finished in 02:42:12. Hellen Jepkos Kimutai claimed the third spot on the podium after crossing the finish line in 02:45:49.

    2017 OPAP Limassol Marathon GSOThe Half Marathon (left) saw both the male and female course records smashed, with Joel Maina Mwangi from Kenya shaving off a minute and a half of the previous record after crossing the finish line in 01:02:52. Stellah Jep Barsosio from Kenya dominated the women’s field and took three minutes off the course record after finishing in 01:09:31. Both took home €1000 prize money each, plus an additional €1,000 for breaking the course records.

    Laszlo Gregor from Hungary was the runner up in the men’s field with a time of 01:06:30, ahead of Ondrej Fejfar from the Czech Republic who finished in 01:08:25.

    The women’s podium was completed with Lindsy James (Russia) 01:27:31 in second place and Katarina Pohlod from Serbia in 01:31:43.

    The Petrolina 10K Energy Race was won by Javier Mavelli from Cyprus (00:36:23) and Olga Andejeva from Estonia (00:37:23), and the winning titles of the 5K City Race were claimed by Marios Apostolides (00:16:55) and Elpida Christodoulidou (00:20:03), both from Cyprus.

    Many British runners had travelled to Cyprus to take part in the races, with Bashir Hussein from the UK making the podium after claiming 3rd place in the Petrolina 10K Energy Race with a time of 00:37:23.

    Another excellent result was achieved by Jackie Newton from the UK who came 5th in the Limassol Half Marathon after crossing the finish line in 01:33:48. Both Newton and Hussein also claimed the top spots in their age categories.

    2017 Results (provisional):

    OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO
    19/03/17, Limassol, Cyprus

    MEN

    1. Edwin Kiprop Kiyeng (Kenya), 02:15:04OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO 2017
    2. Wycliffe Kip Biwot (Kenya), 02:15:40
    3. Pavel Borodin (Cyprus), 02:38:42

    WOMEN

    1. Gladys Jepkurui Biwott (Kenya), 02:40:41 (right)
    2. Anna Handzlik Dagmara (Cyprus), 02:42:12
    3. Hellen Jepkos Kimutai (Kenya), 02:45:49

    Limassol Half Marathon
    19/03/17, Limassol, Cyprus

    MEN

    1. Joel Maina Mwangi (Kenya), 01:02:52
    2. Laszlo Gregor (Hungary), 01:06:30
    3. Ondrej Fejfar (Czech Republic), 01:08:25

    WOMEN

    1. Stellah Jep Barsosio (Kenya), 01:09:31
    2. Lindsy James (Russia), 01:27:31
    3. Katarina Pohlod (Serbia), 01:31:43

    Petrolina 10K Energy Race
    2017 OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO19/03/17, Limassol, Cyprus

    MEN

    1. Javier Mavelli (Cyprus), 00:36:23
    2. Darko Pop Acev (F.Y.R.O.M.), 00:37:21
    3. Bashir Hussain (UK), 00:37:23

    WOMEN

    1. Olga Andejeva (Estonia), 00:37:23
    2. Julia Andreou (Cyprus), 00:41:08
    3. Chrysso Georgiou (Cyprus), 00:41:21

    Please go to the website www.limassolmarathon.com for the full results of all events and for event photographs.

    The event has been deemed a resounding success by runners and spectators alike.

    OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO Race Director Andreas Spyrou commented: “We are delighted with the success of the 2017 OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO are would like to congratulate every competitor who crossed the finish line at each of our six races. It was a phenomenal weekend of sporting achievement for runners of all ages and abilities, from our youth runners to our elite athletes, and it was wonderful to welcome participants of all different nationalities for this weekend celebration of running.

    “Congratulations must go to the winners of each race, all of whom had trained hard to achieve their targets in Limassol. We were also delighted to see so many supporters turn out to cheer on the runners, including family and friends who had travelled from afar to soak up the brilliant atmosphere. As race destinations go, Limassol is really up there with the best of them, as it offers a flat and straight course, magnificent coastal scenery, plentiful history and culture, a pleasant climate and delicious Mediterranean cuisine for all to enjoy.

    OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO“A big thank you to our title sponsor OPAP and all our other sponsors and supporters for helping us to host a truly memorable race weekend.”

    OPAP was the Title Sponsor for the 2017 Limassol Marathon GSO for the second year, alongside a host of high profile gold, silver and media sponsors and supporters.

    The date of the 2018 OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO has been confirmed as 18th March 2018 and entries will open soon.

    Go to http://www.limassolmarathon.com/ for further details. You can also like the Facebook page and follow @RunLimassol #RunLimassol on Twitter to keep up-to-date with all the latest news about OPAP Limassol Marathon GSO.