Over 1000 people ran in the Friendship Marathon in Pleven

Over 1,000 people took part in the twelfth edition of the Friendship Marathon and various accompanying sports events in Pleven this Sunday. Runners from Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, Ukraine and the USA participated in the various disciplines.

The special race, together with over 50 children and young people with special needs, was attended by the Minister of Social Affairs Natalia Efremova, the Chairperson of the Economic and Social Council Zornitsa Roussinova, the Deputy Mayor for Humanitarian Activities of the Municipality of Pleven Dr. Paulina Kirova, as well as the former Minister of Transport Grozdan Karadjov, who is among the participants every year. Diplomats from the American Embassy also took part in the race.

“It is a great pleasure for me to participate in the Friendship Marathon in Pleven – a place that is today becoming the capital of friendship, of an inclusive society, of the idea that Bulgarians can be together, lead a healthy lifestyle, not differentiate between people’s skills, but on the contrary – be very supportive, support each other, so that we achieve a better way of life,” said Minister Efremova at the opening of the event.

Stavrophorous butler Ventsi Hristov from the “Sveta Troitsa” (Holy Trinity) Church in Pleven, with the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Ignatii of Pleven, blessed all participants and guests at the official opening.

The start was given at 9:00 from the central square in Pleven in front of the mausoleum, and the route, which runs through the entire city of Pleven, turned the race into an experience for all residents of the city.

Ivaylo Valev is the winner of the twelfth edition of the Friendship Marathon. He ran the classic distance of 42.195 km in 02:53:47. Soon after him, Evan Fox from the USA finished with a time of 03:01:05, and in third place was Stefan Weber from Germany with a time of 03:09:33.

The fastest in the women’s marathon distance was Iva Ivanova with a time of 03:53:54. Her runners-up were Nina Ruseva (03:56:08) in second place and Rada Kemilova (04:36:56) in third place. Veteran Malina Ivanova won uncontested in the 60+ women’s age group with a time of 04:05:26, which is also the third time in the overall ranking for women in the marathon.

In the veteran men (60-70 years old) in the marathon distance, Krasimir Hristov came first with a time of 04:12:07, and Dimitar Dimitrov came second with a time of 04:50:34.

In the 21.1 km half marathon, Nikolay Efremov was the fastest (1:25:19). There was a tight race for second and third positions, with Drumi Drumev (1:30:15) winning second position by only 4 hundredths of a second ahead of Daniel Goranov (1:30:19), who ranked third.

In the women’s race, Maria Mihaylova won with a time of 1:38:24, followed by Lyudmila Evstatieva (1:40:43) in second and Victoria Dancheva (1:40:54) in third.

The first places in the 10.55 km were taken by Petar Dragnev with 00:38:19 for the men and Desislava Tsvetanova with 00:49:35 for the women. The silver went to Teodor Pavlov (00:38:46), and the bronze went to Oleksandr Rokhovnin from Ukraine (00:39:07). In the women’s race, Sevin Abdilova came second (00:53:54) and Gergana Petkova came third (00:55:20).

In the relay, the first place was taken by the Triathlon SK team “Tri Play” of Valentin Iliev and Ivo Iliev (01:17:49), the second place was taken by the “Run Smart” team – Svetlin Ignatov and Nikolay Peshev (01:22:39), and the third place was taken by the “Tempo Collective” team – Georgi Mitev and Martin Todorov (01:22:39).

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ivan Malkodanski, Chairman of the Pleven Municipal Council, ran a 21 km distance in the name of the marathon cause, which supports education by providing scholarships for medical students under the “Get Ready for Success” program of the BCause Foundation . The initiative is aimed at students with excellent grades who have lost a parent or grew up without parental care, and funds for the cause are being collected until September 30.

To symbolize the spirit of friendship and the strength of human will, runner Kamen Dimitrov ran the 42 km marathon distance wearing a 12-kilogram weight vest. “I think one of the best things in our lives is that we have the right to choose which people we want to be – those who cannot for some reason, or those who can despite the difficulties,” he shared.

Among the official guests were also Ms. Nicole Fox, Acting Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of the United States of America; Mr. Evan Fox, Secretary for Political and Economic Affairs at the Embassy of the United States of America Mr. Boni Bonev, Member of the Board of Directors of Nestle Bulgaria, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement Bulgaria and Chairman of the Bulgarian-Swiss Chamber of Commerce.

Interesting facts from the marathon:

– over 550 children participated in the VIDAS Run Kids children’s cross-country race;

– over 130 people ran together with children and young people with special needs in the special cross-country race;

– more than 40 young people with intellectual disabilities from all over the country gathered in Pleven to volunteer and participate together in the special cross-country race;

– DODO Pizza with a big yellow chicken costume on their brand was an attraction for all the children

– the longest-standing participant (Petar Tsonkov from Varna) ran 42 km for the 11th time;

– the first Bulgarian woman to climb Everest – Petya Kolcheva, successfully completed 21 km;

– Malina Ivanova, who participated for the 10th time in a row in the Friendship Marathon in Pleven, won in the women’s veterans 42 km.

The awards for the winners in the various disciplines were presented on behalf of the main sponsor of the event – EUROINS, our sponsors from VIDAS, Nuvei and PwC and the partners “Devin”, “Decathlon”, DODO Pizza, ASICS, MelliGel, NutriWave, DoppelHerz, Running zone, Lotus Sport, Harmonica, Nestle’ Bulgaria, Amore Daily. The books from SoftPress and Reggy and Mozzie delighted many children, and with the useful books by Genadi Genadiev and Maria Oseva we hope that more people will fall in love and lead an active and healthy lifestyle.

The main sponsor of the 12th Friendship Marathon is EUROINS. The event is organized by Eyes Open in partnership with the Municipality of Pleven and is realized with the support of VIDAS, Nuvei and PwC, companies that consistently support the development of sports and socially significant causes.

The special cross for the inclusion of people with different abilities is realized in partnership with Maria’s World Foundation and Jamba The sports partner of the event is DECATHLON, organizer of “DECATHLON – Mass Cross 3 km” and the initiative “DECATHLON – Sport for All”.