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| "Evening Swim" in Costa Teguise (Photo Credit Simon Turkas) |
This is the Lanzarote that most people know about, but what might surprise many though is that Lanzarote is fast becoming a top sporting destination! A lot of this is also thanks to the famous year-round sunny climate. This makes it an ideal location for training as you will rarely be disrupted by bad weather conditions. Along all the popular coastlines such as at Puerto del Carmen, Costa Teguise and Playa Blanca, you will find people running or cycling. The rise in popularity of these sports is growing rapidly. There are also free to use exercise machines in all medium to large size towns, and even some of the small villages, and sports clubs and gyms opening up across the island. It seems like all of a sudden everyone wants to get fit!
Alongside this growth in training and sporting activity, Lanzarote is also host to some major sporting events. The most prestigious and well know is the IRONMAN Lanzarote event which is one of the toughest triathlon events in the world. Every summer thousands of competitors arrive in Lanzarote to compete in this extremely tough swimming, running and cycling event. It is not called IRONMAN for nothing (although of course women also compete)!
The second most prestigious event is the Lanzarote International Marathon which happens every year in December and is now in its 25th year on the island! Thousands of runners from all over the world arrive in Lanzarote to compete in this event which continues to grow ever more popular. The great thing about Lanzarote is that although the marathon takes place in the middle of winter, the conditions are still generally perfect. The average temperature at this time of year in Lanzarote is 19 degrees Celsius and sunny.
The Lanzarote International Marathon is also unlike most other marathons in the world. Many other major marathons take place within cities where you will of course be surrounded by urban architecture and general city noise and chaos. As mentioned earlier, Lanzarote has stunning beaches and a unique volcanic landscape. These provide an amazing backdrop to the route that the competitors run along. The scenery that you will see if you are competing is really amazing as you will be running right along the coastline. On one side there are beaches and the beautiful blue Atlantic ocean, and on the other side the picturesque towns of Puerto Del Carmen, Arrecife and Costa Teguise, and volcanic hills. All of this under a (generally) bright blue sky!
If you are not ready to compete in a full marathon, there are also the options of a half marathon, 10km or 5km runs. The Lanzarote International Marathon also aims to be very inclusive for all ages and abilities. There is a separate marathon day for kids with four separate distance categories, and also wheel chair competitors can take part in the main marathon.
If you would like more information about the event or to book a place in the marathon, then head over to the website here: http://www.lanzaroteinternationalmarathon.com/home-en/
The full marathon is fully booked already but there are still places available in the other distances, but you will have to move fast as they are going quickly!
You can also follow the marathon social media channels to keep up to date with all the news:
If you are planning to compete, good luck!
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