The first wave of runners participating in the Irish Life Dublin Marathon started off at 8:40 this morning, the 26th of October. 22,500 runners began their journey at the top of Leeson Street on a downhill start, then finished at the Pepper Canister Church near St Stephen’s Green. The University Times spoke to several runners, many students and alumni from Trinity, about their experiences in the race.
“Running the Dublin marathon is a way for me to practice my discipline and resilience”, said Trinity student, Aaron Groome, who participated in the race. “It’s a challenging goal that has made me learn to never give up. I also get to bond with my siblings by training and running alongside them.”
The course was open for 7 hours to allow walkers and less time-oriented joggers to finish. 15,000 US dollars is also set as the grand prize purse for the first place finisher in the Men and Women Open category, with 5000 dollars set as the top bonus payout for the top 3 finishers under 2 hours and 12 minutes for men, and 2 hours 29 minutes for women. Daniel Mesfin of the United States won the race overall with a time of 2:08.51, while 19-year-old Ava Crean and 26-year-old David McGlynn won the national titles for Ireland for women and men, crossing the line in 2:34.11 and 2:11.01, respectively.
“Besides the weather, it felt amazing to run the Dublin marathon!” said Salvador Valença Martins Dias, another Trinity student runner, in a statement to The University Times. “Insane energy, the crowd was cheering, I felt ecstatic the whole way through! I ran the Dublin marathon with Belong to LGBTQ+ youth Ireland, and raised about 2.5k for them! I’ve always wanted to run a marathon, but knowing every step went towards helping my community made it ten times easier.”
The course, after its start on Leeson Street, runners run around St Stephen’s Green, through the Liberties and past St Patrick’s Cathedral. After running downhill through Patrick Street to the Northside, runners reach the 6 km point at Phoenix Park, which they run the length of to Castleknock. The route then re-enters the park at Knockmaroon Gate, descending towards Chapelizod and then to Inchicore. The halfway point comes at Crumlin Road, with the third 10 km segment ending at Terenure. Around the 35 km mark, the famous “Irish Heartbreak Hill” presents what the Marathon website calls “the most formidable challenge before a downhill along Fosters Avenue.” After passing RTÉ studios at the 38 km mark. Runners then reach the final stretch down Merrion Road, past the RDS, to the finish line at Pepper Canister Church on Mount Street Upper, where supporters will gather to cheer on participants.
“I’m happy I was able to finish the race in spite of all the rain. I really saw “the power of support” today. There were almost too many people handing out Haribo packs on the sidelines keeping me going,” said Groome.
Other highlights of the race included 85-year-old Kevin Stynes completing his 42nd consecutive run in the marathon, as reported by the Irish Times. Stynes finished in 6:18.45.
