Marathon Prague again. This can be good news for both the city and the business
One of the world’s most popular marathons is back. On Sunday, after a three-year break caused by the covid, more than ten thousand professional and amateur athletes and athletes from half the planet will take part in the streets of the hundred-towered Prague.
Their re-presence in the capital can be positive news not only for the organizer RunCzech, but also for the metropolis itself or local businesses. In addition to the partial traffic collapse, the Volkswagen Marathon Prague brings over one hundred thousand domestic and foreign tourists to the largest Czech city every year, who spend a lot of money in it.
According to an independent study, the RunCzech plant brings the metropolis with a direct economic profit of almost 700 million crowns. “The marathon can thus become one of the first big drivers of tourism for Prague,” believes Carlo Capalbo, director of the RunCzech cross-country league.
Footage from the Old Town Square, Charles Bridge and other sights in the context of one of the largest sporting events organized in our country can be watched by famous television channels every year through over 700 million viewers from 130 countries. In the same period, up to three thousand positive reports about the Prague-related marathon will appear in the world media.
“We perceive that this event is a magnet for sports-oriented tourists from all over the world and promotes our city in a selected way,” confirms Vít Šimral, Prague councilor recommends for education and sports. Not only individuals will take part in the start of the 42,195-kilometer run, of which Forbes is the main media partner, this year.
For the first time, runners will also compete in the Battle of The Teams team competition. Each of the six teams – Volkswagen, ČEZ Group, Mattoni, Birell, adidas Runners and Generali Česká pojišťovna – will be represented by four elite runners. However, they can be supplemented by any of the other participants in the race, and their result will also depend.
“The system we have devised is groundbreaking and attracts the attention of the athletic world. We have made the royal individual race a team sport and the time of each participant will be important, “says Carlo Capalbo at the address of the competition, whose ambassadors are also members of Forbes selections 30 under 30 Bára Votíková and Jiří Prskavec.
A reward of 30 thousand dollars, ie almost 700 thousand crowns, is prepared for the winning team, which will be shared equally by all its professional representatives.
The winners of the individual categories can look forward to prize money in the amount of 12.5 thousand dollars (almost 300 thousand crowns). If the world record was broken, its holder would also take home one hundred thousand dollars (2.3 million crowns).