The Cyprus Marathon and Logicom continue their partnership

Cyprus Marathon September 9, 2016 No Comments

The past two years have been very successful for the Logicom Cyprus Marathon. The participation numbers have risen around 75% for each year, the organisational level has improved dramatically and the runners have had very positive experiences from their participation in the Marathon.

All of these accomplishments have been possible due to the partnership with Logicom. Logicom Distribution is a leading regional distributor of technology products, solutions and services in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

We joined forces in the year 2015 and we are delighted to announce that we renewed our cooperation for the 3rd consecutive year for the Logicom Cyprus Marathon, which will be organised on Sunday 5th March 2017. Logicom will be once again the major sponsor of the 2017 Cyprus Marathon.

Swindon Striders from UK holding the Logicom Cyprus Marathon Goodie Bags!
Swindon Striders from UK holding the Logicom Cyprus Marathon Goodie Bags!

Logicom’s Managing Director, Varnavas Irinarchos, said: “For the third year in a row, we are proud to once again lend the Logicom name and reiterate our commitment to the Logicom Cyprus Marathon, held in Paphos, the European Capital of Culture 2017. We are looking to an even bigger and better event that will certainly bring together people from all across the world in a multi-cultural running festival that will celebrate all our beautiful island has to offer. The feedback from past runners has been excellent, and we are excited to be working alongside the Marathon organizers for what is sure to be another highly successful event.”

Big thank you to Logicom who made possible our next step in making the Logicom Cyprus Marathon a world-class Marathon.

Looking forward to seeing you in Pafos on 5th March 2017! You can choose from four different races: Marathon, Half-Marathon, 10km Road Race and 5km Fun Run!

Related: The History of the Cyprus Marathon (since 1999)

Who is Who: Swindon Striders Running Club

Cyprus Marathon September 5, 2016 No Comments

Swindon Striders is a running club based in Swindon, United Kingdom. They have been participating in the Logicom Cyprus Marathon for the past 4 years, with more than 20 runners each year. In 2017, they will be participating in the Logicom Cyprus Marathon for the 5th consecutive time! We caught up with Ms. Beverley Jones to learn more about their running club.

Swindon Striders posing in front of the Paphos Castle - 2014

Q: What is the reason for the creation of the Swindon Striders Running Club?

A: We are a friendly road and trail running club based in Swindon. Created in 1995 by a small group of recreational runners we have always aimed to welcome all levels and type of runners. For people who want to get fit in the fresh air and meet like minded people or for those who want to train hard for that next race, we have runners of all types at the club. We are focussing on friendly support and encouragement to enable our members to strive for their personal goals.

Q: Few words about Swindon?

A: Swindon is a large town in Wiltshire, South West England of approximately 40 square kilometres, London is 78 miles to the east. The landscape is dominated by the chalk hills of the Wiltshire Downs to the south and east. Probably best known for Isambard Kingdom Brunel‘s Swindon Works, built between 1841 and 1842 for the repair and maintenance of locomotives on the Great Western Railway (GWR). The Steam Railway Museum and English Heritage, now occupy part of the old works.

Also read: Places To Visit in Paphos

Q: What are some activities and events organised by the club?

A: As a club we have regular training sessions which in the summer include speed sessions and interval training and in the winter we include Fartlek and hill training.  We have also had ‘Beep test’ sessions which encourages friendly competition.

Swindon Striders also supports many local races, from 5ks to Ultras and one favourite in the summer is the 86 mile Ridgeway Relay where we enter as a team of at least 10 runners, plus each August we man a 12hr overnight Checkpoint for the Annual 24hr, 86 mile Ridgeway Challenge event.  We have some members who travel around the country running races and some who also regularly travel abroad to race too.

A run across the typical Wiltshire countryside
A run across the typical Wiltshire countryside

Q: What are the benefits of joining the Swindon Striders?

A: As with joining any running club, having others to run alongside and encourage you, helps you to develop and progress your performance and it is also a healthy and fun way to meet new people and increase your social circle.  We like to finish our week with a club run and then a social gathering with a drink and snacks. 

Related: The Benefits of Running

Q: What do you like about the Logicom Cyprus Marathon and why have you been participating for 4 consecutive years?

A: Swindon Striders have thoroughly enjoyed participating in Logicom Cyprus Marathon for the past 4 years.  A trip to Cyprus in March is very welcome after a cold and wet winter and each year the race has been well organised and very friendly, with the opportunity of many trophies for our runners.  Over 20 Striders have travelled out each year and it is one of our favourite overseas trips.

Swindon Striders posing with their trophies after the Cyprus Marathon 2014
Swindon Striders posing with their trophies after the Cyprus Marathon 2014

Q:  Will you be back in 2017?

Swindon Striders will definitely be back for 2017 for our 5th consecutive year!

See you in Paphos!

Interested in taking part? You can register here: https://register.cyprusmarathon.com

Swindon Striders posing in front of the Paphos Castle - 2015
Swindon Striders posing in front of the Paphos Castle – 2015

The History of the Cyprus Marathon

Cyprus Marathon September 1, 2016 No Comments

The Foundations

It all started way before the first Cyprus Marathon in 1999. The Race Director and founder of the Cyprus Marathon, Stavros Kakourides, was a keen runner since he was 20 years of age and organised the first Charity Marathon race in Cyprus in 1987 raising more than £2,700. His passion for running led him to co-found and lead, as a President, the first ever running club in Cyprus from 1988 till 1994. He organised more than 50 running events and ran 3 Marathons before setting out to organise the 1st International Marathon of Cyprus.

                                                              The Race Director running the first Charity Marathon in Cyprus in 1987

The main idea for the Marathon was to not only showcase some of the major landmarks of the city of Pafos; but to also offer the opportunity to enjoy a wonderful and traditional entertainment. Other than the 3 more races that were organised alongside the Marathon which include a Half-Marathon, a 10km Road Race as well as a 4km Fun Run, a lot of side-events were organised as well. Those included a Mayor’s Breakfast Run, Pasta Dinner the night before the race, Post-event Dinner Party as well as a Village run 2 days after the Marathon!

                                                                                 Before the Mayor’s Breakfast Run in 1999

It was up until 2008 and after the 10th edition of the Marathon that the Organising Committee decided to stop all the side events and focus all efforts at organising a world class Marathon (including a Half-Marathon and a 10km Race). This lead to the introduction of finish line festivities, such as free beer at the finish line and the prize award ceremony at the end of all 3 races! In 2016 the 5km Fun Run was also added with the co-operation of Pafos2017 (European Capital of Culture Organisation).

The Unique Characteristics

  • – Packed Bundle: A packed bundle including a technical t-shirt, finisher’s medal, fluid stations every 3 km (water, electrolytes, energy gels, sponges & bananas), finish line massage, podiatrists and doctors throughout the course, fruit, water, juices and free beer at the finish line.
  • – Weather: The Mediterranean climate allows the Logicom Cyprus Marathon to be one of the first Marathons of the “spring season” due to its favourable temperatures.
  • – Picturesque Scenery/European Capital of Culture: Aphrodite’s Birthplace, Archaeological Park (Mosaics from Romans), 12 Blue flag Beaches, Wineries, Monasteries and Golf Courses.
  • – Electric Atmosphere: Due to its picturesque finish line venue (Pafos Medieval Fort Square) it has the flavour of history, culture and tradition.
  • – Planning & Organisation: One of the strongest points of the event is the organisation and the set-up of all the service points including the Marathon Expo, the fluid stations, the signage, the race marshals and the finish line!
More details for each race: Marathon – Half-Marathon – 10km Road Race – 5km Fun Run

                                                                         The Registration/Information office in 1999

Why Pafos?

The European Capital of Culture 2017, Pafos, with its beautiful countryside, historic sights as well as being a cosmopolitan resort with more than 200 hotels, is the ideal location to host such a multi-cultural event. The numbers reinforce the multi-cultural quality of the Logicom Cyprus Marathon with around 45% of the participants coming from abroad. Specifically, 1 in 4 runners (25%) comes from the United Kingdom with the other 20% coming from other countries such as Germany, Poland, Russia, France, Italy and Greece.

Related: Places to visit in Pafos

Swindon Strides Running Club attending at the Cyprus Marathon for 4 consecutive years

The new era

The Logicom Cyprus Marathon needed a breath of fresh air. This was achieved with the introduction of George Kakourides in 2014 who took over the Marketing element of the event as well as being in charge of the finish line operations. After finishing his studies in Sports Management in 2012 and finishing his first Marathon in Athens 2015, he was able to revamp the whole event. His push for new sponsors and partners brought in the needed resources to improve the already attractive package of products and services for each runner (inc. technical t-shirt, wonderful medals, chip timing, energy gels, finish line massage and many more). The new branding of the Logicom Cyprus Marathon, including a more powerful and active social media presence, new logo and new website meant that we could reach many more Marathon enthusiasts around the world and increase the participation. The event has also been transforming to a more social event, with the introduction of a 5km Fun Run in 2016, to include people from all walks of life and promote the great benefits of sports and participation.
There has been a 75% growth in participation each year in 2015 and 2016 and a 45% growth in 2017.

The future

The next Logicom Cyprus Marathon will be organised on 4th March 2018. It will be the 20th edition of this historic Marathon and the biggest and best one yet! The celebrations for the 20th edition are sure to attract more runners, more enjoyment and more fun at the next event.

For the record: The Marathon winners

2000 – Pandelis Kambaxis – GRE – 2:47:03 h

2001 – Yiannakis Demetriou – CYP – 2:55:26 h

2002 – Pol Dekeirel – BEL – 2:48:58 h

2003 – Allan Fotheringham – UK – 2:54:55 h

2004 – Ditier Pomey – FRA – 2:52:41 h

2005 – Salameh Al Aqra – JOR – 2:33:03 h – Course Record

2006 – Andrzej Magier – POL – 2:52:01 h

2007 – Salameh Al Aqra – JOR – 2:41:07 h

2008 – Al Sheith Khaled – JOR – 2:56:15 h

2009 – Mark Werner – USA – 2:56:26 h

2010 – Joe Cawley – IRE – 2:51:22 h

2011 – Gabor Szabo – HUN – 2:44:07 h

2012 – Slim Samer – LEB – 2:55:47 h

2013 – Raphael Igrişianu – ROM – 2:44:50 h

2014 – Raphael Igrişianu – ROM – 2:48:20 h

2015 – Magnus Gödiker – GER – 2:45:39 h

2016 – Jose Ramon Torres Peanilla– SPA – 2:47:16 h

2017 – Liviu Croitoru – MOL – 2:36:18 h

2018 – Adam Holland – UK – 2:46:14 h

2019 – Adam Holland – UK – 2:35:03 h