Sydney Marathon is up, Valencia may be down

I went to Melbourne, Australia, in the 80’s, at a time when the local Marathon was striving to be listed as one of the most important in the world. At that time, New York, London, Chicago, Berlin, Tokyo and Boston had already been selected or were on their way to being selected.

The Australians thought that their country should not be left out. First, they pointed out that all the major marathons were in the northern hemisphere, and Australia, at least in their opinion, was the most important country, sportswise, in the Southern Hemisphere, with its long tradition of doing well in the Olympic Games.

Well, Australia now has a Marathon in the Majors, but it is not the Melbourne one. The Sydney Marathon has just been selected to be part of the elite group of what is known as the Abbott World Marathon Majors, thanks to what has been described as “hard work on the part of the organizers”.

I guess Melbourne, that calls itself “Australia’s Premier Marathon”, will not be pleased. Curiously, the Sydney Marathon is a more recent race, having started only in 2000, the year of the Sydney Olympic Games.

Good news for Sydney, at a time when uncertainty still threatens the Valencia Marathon, in Spain, due to the weather phenomenon known as DANA. It occurs when cold air meets very warm air near the surface, especially when it happens over a body of water, with high humidity. In this case, it was the Mediterranean Sea .

The catastrophe has been linked to climate change as a result of global warming. Up until this moment, the Valencia Marathon organizers have not yet officially announced the cancellation of the race, scheduled for 1st December.

Uncertainty looms large, though. It will be a pity if the cancellation is confirmed. The Valencia Marathon has a fast, flat course, and is a favorite among runners from all over the world.

It will also be ironic if, at this precise time, the American people put back in the White House a man like Donald Trump, who has asserted that “global warming is a hoax”.