2019 Access Bank Lagos City Marathon: Runners rate organisation poor

Some participants who featured at the 4th Access Bank Lagos City Marathon rated the organisation of the 42km poor.
Some of them said that they were disappointed with the way things were handled after finishing their race.
Doyin James, a second time participant, who works for Coca-Cola, said that the way runners were treated was not commendable.
“I will not participate in the race again, to me, everything was a fraud. Why were they hoarding the medals after the race? They should have given us our medal as we were finishing.
“After the race, I could not get water to drink, some athletes were even treated like nobody just because they came to run,” he said.
Abayomi Adelani, who ran the 10km race said he was disappointed but it would not deter him from participating in the next edition.
“This is my fourth year of participating, for me, one year to another is always problematic. After you finish running, no proper direction to where you are supposed to go.
“I was even dragged by a security personnel because I did not know where to go. If it were to be a civilian, I know what I would have done,” he said.

Adebisi Alimi, who ran the 42km, race also decried the manner in which most runners were treated.
Alimi, who resides at Mushin also said she might not participate in the 2020 edition.
Gideon Goyet was the first Nigerian male to cross the finish line. He achieved the feat with a time of 2:30:20 seconds.
Deborah Pam, who placed sixth in the international category was the first Nigerian female to cross the finish line with a time of 2:52:58secs.
Fadekemi Olude placed second in the Nigerian female category with a time of 2:58:43secs, while Elizabeth Nuhu came third with a time of 3:01:26secs.
The first Nigerian will go home with a token N3 million, second place with N2 million, while the third position got N1 million.
Despite the downpour in the early hours of the day, participants defied the rainfall to ensure they were not late for the race.
The competition, which started at 6.25 a.m. featured no fewer than 20,000 runners.
Some of the runners said at the starting point of the 42km race that they slept within the stadium axis as they did not want to be late for the race.
Ismail Agunbiade, 32, said that he had to leave his house around Kilo area in Surulere at 5 a.m. in spite of the rain.
“I could not even sleep because all my thought was on the marathon, I could not afford to be late. Going with the crowd is the fun of starting the race,” he said.
Eniola Smith, a student of Yaba College of Technology, said that the rain was no deterrent, saying that the weather would make running easier for her.
“Though this is my first time of participating, I am sure the weather will improve the running time of elite and amateur runners.
“I am happy to be participating even when I know that I may not win. The beauty of it is running,” she said.
Amira Ismaila, also a student said that she was happy that it rained, saying that it would make the weather bearable.
She also commended the organisers for starting as scheduled.
Shola Ajani, who came to cheer the runners said that she had to defy the rain to catch a glimpse of the runners being her first time.
Kazeem Tijani, a resident of Masha in Surulere, said it was fun cheering the athletes all the way.
“I enjoyed the experience last year, though I could not run because of health issue, I am here to give my support,” he said.
Meanwhile, some traders had a field day as they lined up the streets to make brisk business.
The marathon, which was ushered in by a downpour, started around 6.25 a.m. with many traders already out to supply both the runners and the spectators’ needs.
A petty trader, Adaeze Uchena, said she was out to supply the needs of the participants, adding that it had become a norm since the inception of the marathon for her to make brisk sale.
“This marathon is a blessing to me because many of the spectators and runners always need one thing or the other. So, I deal with what they need.
“I sell the basic refreshments that people will need and the rain means nothing if I can sell my wares,” she said.
Suleiman Adamo, a local bread seller, said he came out knowing that some of the spectators would prefer hot tea and bread for breakfast.
“The rain really helped my business because many of the passersby prefer to have something hot, so, tea and bread is the preferred option,” he said.
Another petty trader, who simply want to be described as Mama Bose, said the marathon provided the once in a year opportunity above her normal sale.
“I can confirm that sales during the marathon is quite different from normal day sales. Last year, I made almost triple the sale compared to ordinary days.
“This is an event that has many people participating in it, so, the sale should be different from the normal. The only difference is that this event only comes once in a year,” she said.