amateurs

Finishing a marathon is not easy. Not something that is available to anyone. Covering more than 40 kilometers without fainting or even with the aim of beating a personal record (not to mention going for the podium) requires weeks of preparation and careful diet. The question is… When the big moment arrives, the day of putting on the shoes, how far can you take that sporting zeal? This weekend, during the Zurich Barcelona Marathona group of runners He decided that his personal brand was more important than the work of an ambulance. And that, of course, has unleashed controversy. The great Barcelona race. March 15. Barcelona. The Zurich Marató, one of the most popular events in Spain on the circuit runnercelebrates its 47th edition. A very special one. The organization has accounted 32,000 runnersa absolute record which gives an idea of ​​the popularity of the Catalan test and especially of the huge success that is reaching the running in Spain. The marathon progresses without problems. Abel Chelangat cross first the finish line with a spectacular time of 2:04:57. In the female category, Ethiopian Fotyen Tesfay is crowned (2:10:53). The problem arrives after a few hours, when it begins to circulate on networks a video which shows a much less edifying side of that same career. The piece does not last half a minute, but it has already accumulated hundreds of thousands of views and is at the center of a bitter debate about amateur sports. @pista_22 RUNNING FEVER 🤮 I had a bittersweet taste today at the @maratobarcelona. To what extent are we willing to act like an asshole to beat our personal best? On the one hand, very happy to see the happy faces of my friends and people when crossing the last meters to the finish line. But, on the other hand, I have seen many people who were practically dragged to the finish line, even more than one who collapsed. You have to know where each person’s limits are. But the most ridiculous thing has been seeing health workers and police trying to stop the race for a few minutes to be able to attend to a person, while people ignored the instructions to cross the finish line. VERY SAD what we experienced today, honestly. ♬ original sound – Christian TC What does the video show? Basically two things. The first is an ambulance making its way (or at least trying to) through part of the route with the sirens and emergency beacons activated. The second are dozens of runners who continue jogging next to the vehicle as if nothing was happening. It is not that the runners keep doing your thing, it’s just that the recording shows how there are runners who ignore when they are asked to stop to facilitate the work of health technicians. At one point in the video you can even see how a runner breaks away from a paramedic who is trying to restrain him and sneaks around the side of the ambulance, forcing another technician to run after him. “Stop it, man. The ambulance!” The recording is brief and cut, but it has been enough to stir up debate on networks. The reason? What you see in it. And what is intuited. To begin with, the Arc de Triomf is seen in the background, which indicates that the event occurs late in the test, relatively close to the goal. Secondly, everything indicates that what we see in the video are amateur runners. That is, people who run for the hobby and love of the sport. If the runners do not stop to facilitate the passage of the ambulance and the work of the health workers, it is not because they prioritize their sports careers, something that would already be questionable. They don’t stop simply because they are amateurs who want to improve their personal bests and are not willing to give up even a few seconds. Even if it is at the cost of hindering the work of an ambulance. Lack of empathy? The video has been shared mainly on forums specializedalthough it has also been reported in some general Catalan media, like 3 CAT chain. This has served to generate a intense debate between people who criticize the attitude of the runners and those who consider that reality is more complicated. “When you’ve been on your legs for 42 kilometers, you don’t even know what’s going on around you. You see an ambulance and you don’t know what it’s doing there, you don’t even wonder. The only thing you’re thinking about is the goal, getting there,” writes a user in The backdrop. If the video has aroused so much interest it is because it connects with other underlying trends that go beyond the Barcelona marathon. The main one, the success of running amateur in Spain. The best proof is participation record in the Catalan race (around 32,000 registered), which sold out more than two months in advance; but it’s not the only one. In the Valencia marathon the places are so disputed that a draw is called to register, in Seville the bibs are sold out months before of the race and in cities like Malaga either Saragossa tests are becoming more popular. In fact, in the Aragonese capital a half marathon was held yesterday that broke its attendance record, with more than 6,500 registered in the 21K mode. Is there more? Yes. The Barcelona video also shows two other phenomena. The first is the obsession with brands and sharing them, even among fans. The second is how networks in this case have helped establish prejudices. Whether or not we share the criticism (and justifications) that have been deployed in X for the attitude of the Barcelona runners, there is one undeniable fact: in the video only a few dozen runners (in the best of cases), a tiny part of the nearly 32,000 who, according to the organization itselfwere registered. Images | x In Xataka | “I know … Read more