Tamarindo Beach Marathon

Source: CostaRicapages

Costa Rica's Tamarindo Hosts 2nd Annual Marathon | Costa Rica Travel News

Costa Rica’s Tamarindo Hosts 2nd Annual Marathon

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Hundreds of People Participated in the 2nd Annual Tamarindo Marathon.

This past weekend, more than 700 national and international athletes took part in the second annual “Tamarindo Beach Marathon” in Tamarindo, Guanacaste. The event brought together some of the most dedicated marathon runners in the world and helped to put Tamarindo on the map in the running world.

The competition began on Saturday, Aug. 9 at 5 a.m. with the trial run of 30 kilometers and was followed by a full marathon, in which Bernard Zongoka from Kenya came in first place along with fellow Kenyan, Moisés Saina.

The event, which was sponsored by the Guanacaste Chamber of Tourism (CATURGUA) and other local companies, attracted a large amount of foreign tourists as well as Ticos who are dedicated to the sport of running. About 300 foreigners were signed up for the marathon, but it is estimated that more than 1,000 tourists came overall as the runners brought friends and family for support and to enjoy the Costa Rica beaches. More than 100 U.S. runners and about 1,000 Costa Rican runners have already confirmed their participation in next year’s event, and it is expected that at least 200 more foreigners will participate.

Both marathons held in Tamarindo have been extremely successful thanks to favorable topographic conditions as well as the amount of hotels available to house the visitors. As marathon committee director Victor López pointed out, the type of visitors that the event attracts are very beneficial to the area; not just economically, but also thanks to their interest in a healthy lifestyle and respect for nature.

In the future, the marathon will continue to take place during the low tourist season between August and September, to take advantage of the room availabilities in local hotels, lower prices and less traffic.

From the point of view of CATURGUA’s Executive Director, Mauricio Céspedes, the repetition of this event now and in the future is a way to focus on a new tourism niche. As Costa Rica has succeeded in other specific areas such as eco-tourism, medical tourism and adventure tourism, among others, by offering something unique for dedicated athletes and gaining popularity in the marathon scene, the country will be able to attract tourists that might not have considered Travel to Costa Rica in the past.

CATURGUA is just several years old and dedicates itself to promoting tourism to the region. The members are all business owners or executives involved in tourism in the area and work together to improve the region’s tourist offerings. One important focus is the region’s work force and service industry. The chamber works to help small and medium size companies as well as to educate and train personnel to help them improve their services and qualify for positions in the local tourism industry.

Photo courtesy of Fabio Madrigal.