As the 50 Day Countdown milestone until the opening ceremony of the 2nd Commonwealth Mountain and Ultra Distance Championships in North Wales (23-25 September 2011) passes, the organisers have seen a flurry of nations submit confirmations and team selections, signalling that a majestic sea of international colour and culture will be on show in Wales for this festival
of international running.
Championships press and media officer Matt Ward is confident that the three host venues of Llandudno (Conwy), Llanberis (Gwynedd) and Newborough Forest (Ynys Mon) will enjoy international sport unseen in this corner of Wales for over half a century, stating:
“We really are excited about how the Championships are now coming together, and we are very pleased with progress on securing the commitment of the Commonwealth’s nations to compete. The last time Wales saw an event of this type in the region was the Empire Games in 1958, so we really are in a historic sporting position.
“The pull of these Championships has grown since the inaugural event in Keswick in 2009, and with such attractions as terrestrial and global satellite television coverage many countries are seeing these Championships as a pedestal for their nation and their athletic prowess.
“The roster of countries is growing by the day and the organising team are busy securing visas and arranging logistics for athletes and staff who will be travelling from as far a field as New Zealand and Zimbabwe”.
The three spectacular north-west Wales locations will extend a weekend programme of Championship and Open races across the disciplines of road, mountain and trail running, targeted at both local athletes and the visiting runners from the UK and beyond.
Media and Communications officer of CAMUR (Commonwealth Association of Mountain and Ultradistance Running) Nadeem Khan, is extremely pleased with progress and states:
“Welsh Athletics and the team from the Local Organising Committee have left no stone unturned in ensuring that the 2nd Commonwealth Mountain and Ultradistance Running Championships are a true success. This has been clearly demonstrated through their strong commitments leading up to these championships. The number of athletes and federations is reaching record numbers and I am confident that the participating countries will be captivated by the thrilling race courses lined up, the warm hospitality of the hosts and the organisation of a worldclass event. We are all looking forward to the next 50 days as we progress towards September 23rd and the start of these Championships.”
At the heart of these nations will be the Welsh team and following the mountain race selection trial to be held in Blackburn on 13 August, Welsh Athletics will announce the full line-up of athletes that will take on the might of the Commonwealth across the
disciplines of mountain and ultra-distance road and trail running.
Welsh Athletics Head of Development, Steve Brace, was in North Wales yesterday visiting the Opening Ceremony location Venue Cymru and to recce the Trail and 24 Hour race routes with athletes Nat Lane and Jen Salter, Steve is effusive when it comes to the Championships and Wales’ prospects for the events:
“I think we have some excellent prospects across the events. John Pares brought home a bronze in the 24 Hour race two years ago in Keswick, and I expect that within the 2011 Welsh team we will have the athletes to medal in a few races.
“Our development programmes at Welsh Athletics are centred around producing strong distance runners, capable of competing at the highest level and at Major Championships, and in a couple of weeks we will be in a position to announce the names who we hope will bring success to Wales at these Championships”.
The Welsh Government’s Major Events Unit is supporting the event in a public sector partnership with Conwy, Gwynedd and Ynys Mon County Borough Councils and is fully supported by CAMUR (Commonwealth Association of Mountain and Ultra Distance Running), the International Association of Ultra runners (IAU), the World Mountain Running Association (WMRA), by the sports Governing bodies Welsh Athletics and UK Athletics.
