FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
World Marathon Record Holder Patrick Makau Returns to Take on the
Metro 10K Race as Part of the Mattoni Grand Prix Prague
Prague/As we can see, he kept his word. World marathon record holder,
Patrick Makau is coming back to the Czech Republic. We can look forward to
seeing him at the start line of the Metro 10K Race being held as part of
the Mattoni Grand Prix Prague next Saturday, 8 September.
"As you know, I was truly delighted to be invited to Prague last year in
autumn. I've made some friends there so I am really looking forward to
coming back. I'd still like to spend more time in Prague and, during the
course of the next few years, take part also in other races of the
RunCzech.com running series, while also getting to know your country
better. "I consider the Metro 10K Race as a part of my preparation for the
Frankfurt Marathon in autumn" the 27 year old Kenyan runner revealed.
"Although he is a world record holder in marathon running, his personal
best in the 10 km (five years ago with a time of 27:27 in Berlin, editor's
note) is faster than the course record. So we're expecting to see him go
for this time, even though his preparations are set on the marathon,"
Manager of Elite Athletes, Jana Moberly commented.
After backing out of the London Marathon, held in spring, Patrick Makau
surprisingly didn't make it into the Olympic Kenyan team. "The thing that
held me back wasn't a muscle injury but rather an irritation to my sciatic
nerve. I was able to resume training after taking a week-long break. I
underwent a few more days of treatment just to ensure that everything was
OK."
But Patrick hasn't lost faith in his Olympic dream. "You mustn't forget
that a few weeks after breaking the world record in Berlin, the President
of the Kenyan Athletics Federation made a public announcement for me to be
included in the Olympic team. I wasn't in the slightest bit worried that
things wouldn't work out."
He was also caught unawares by a number of wrangles taking place behind the
scenes. "I was disappointed. But it's something that even the best athletes
have to overcome at certain points during their career. Unfortunately I
lost the chance to represent my country at the Olympic Games as a world
record holder. But then again, the year still hasn't come to an end and I'm
hopeful that I can look back and tick it off as having been a success," he
says, confidently.
Patrick Makau can expect a jam-packed schedule here in the Czech Republic.
Firstly he'll be running alongside amateur runners in Prague's Stromovka
Park, followed by a visit to Ústí nad Labem, the venue for another
RunCzech.com series event. He is also down to meet Bohuslav Svoboda to pick
up the AIMS Fastest Time Award as well as to pop in on the legendary Dana
Zátopková to congratulate her on her ninetieth birthday. Then in the
evening, he'll be heading straight from the finish line to the pontoon
stage on the Vltava river to greet 'Sen letni noci' festival stars: - Black
and White World: Dejan Pejoviæ, Lenka Dusilová, Szidi Tobias.
Aside from boasting a champion such as Makau, his compatriots Boniface
Kirui Henry Kiplagat, 2010 winner Mourad Marofit from Morocco and Yoshinori
Oda from Japan will also perform their best. All of them are capable of
pushing past the 28 minute barrier. In terms of the ladies, the strengths
of Ethiopian favourite, Tadelech Bekele will certainly be put to the test
by Polish Olympian, Karolina Jarzynská and British representative, Katrin
Wooton.
Czech Elite long-distance runners, fresh from their Olympic Glory
in London – Jan Kreisinger and Ivana Sekyrová or Petra KamKristýnanková will
also be taking part. We can also look forward to watching the participation
of the two promising seventeen year old twins Anežka and Eliska
Drahotová. (project Czech Marathon Hopes).
The best runners will secure themselves 8 000 EUR in the bank (around 200
000 CZK – editor's note) plus 3 000 EUR for breaking the race record.
Another 40 000 CZK is up for grabs for the best Czech runner. And as for
the rest of the runners taking part, they can look forward to
benefiting from first-rate service and facilities. For instance, Hansgrohe
mobile shower trucks which were also used by the German Olympic team in
London. The Mattoni Grand Prix Prague is the only Czech 10 km race to be
awarded with IAAF Road Race Silver Label.
As has been the case for other races, capacity for start numbers in Mattoni
Grand Prix Prague, attracting six thousand runners, was reached in August.
This is what Presidential candidate Vladimír Dlouhý had to say: "I'm
running a lot at the moment as part of my Long Run campaign. I should be
able to manage completing the race in under an hour without any worries".
Volleyball beach beauties, Kristýna Kolocová and Markéta Sluková will also
be adding a touch of glamour to the scene. "It's going to be tough, I'm
expecting around half an hour as long as I don't get lost," says Kolocová.
"And I'm looking forward to treating myself to one small beer at the finish
line to cool off and recover," Sluková adds.
We may expect even faster performances than these from Olympic flag bearer
and badminton player, Petr Koukal, the eminent cardiologist Jan Pirk who is
a regular participant, while you may also bump into the dentist we all know
from the media, Roman Smucler as well as the renowned bare-footed runner,
Julius Pataki and maybe even the Japanese runner bearing the appealing
writers name, Kazutaka Murakami.
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