Chairman of Lagos State Sports Commission and Head of the Local Organising Committee for the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon, Mr. Deji Tinubu, has assured that Lagos is ready to host the world with the February 6 Marathon race taking place in the Centre of Excellence.
At a public briefing held at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Tinubu served updates on activities already ongoing to ensure a successful race next month.
Tinubu explained that relevant agencies are already carrying out necessary test run on the race route even as he also revealed that the Lagos City Marathon has secured endorsement from the Confederation of African Athletics while same is being expected from the International Association of Athletics Federation.
“In line with the international rule, we’ve gone round the marathon route and all the water points, security points, medical points, everything has been noted and various agencies have also visited.
“We’ve also have written to the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Information, Ministry of Environment, Road Safety Corps, Ministry of Transportation, Tourism, Local Government, Lagos State Signs and Advertising Agency, the Nigeria Police, and I am happy to say that every single one of them have committed one hundred and one percent to make the marathon a huge success.
“The Ministry of Transportation had a drive test-run of the marathon route, also the LASTMA for an appraisal of traffic management and control of traffic during and after the marathon, Tinubu concluded.
On his part, General Manager for the Marathon, Yussuf Alli, confirmed that more elite athletes are showing interest to be part of the Lagos race.
According to him, with the calibre of athletes and prize monies on offer, the Lagos City Marathon should be able to get an IAAF label in its next edition.
Already, organisers have announced that the winners of both the men and women’s events will go home with $50,000 each, while second and third place finishers will take $40,000 and $30,000 respectively.
The top 20 Nigerians will also be rewarded win cash prizes starting from N1 million, while the second and third positions will settle for N750 000 and N500 000 respectively.
The February 6 race in Lagos is the first full international marathon in Nigeria in 30 years.
