Bourges-Vierzon: the first Cher marathon attracts more runners than expected

The Cher departmental council preferred to finance sporting events rather than paying 180,000 euros to see the Olympic flame pass. This marathon is the most important event. The department wants to take advantage of this to make a tourist showcase since the route is largely along the Berry canal, between the two main towns of the department, Bourges and Vierzon.

Registrations have been launched since the fall, communication has done the rest. Franck Bonnaud, the president of the Cher athletics committee, did not expect such enthusiasm: “We said to ourselves that if we had a thousand registered it would be great. We are at 1,600. The half-marathon starting from the Château de Mehun-sur-Yèvre attracted a lot of people. There will be 650. We estimate that this is the maximum number and we have not offered additional bibs. There are almost 600 of us in the marathon. And around 300 over the 10 km. For us, this is already a success. We have a lot of runners from the Paris region. It is true that the start of the marathon from the square in front of Bourges Cathedral will be majestic.”

“Something that was missing”

Vincent, from Bourges, is recovering from an injury but he absolutely wanted to take part in the event: “It’s true that it’s something that was missing.*** Before, for a marathon, you had to go to Tours or Orléans. I registered because I really want the event to live on the annual racing calendar. I like the concept of connecting Bourges to Vierzon too. So, it’s true that it might be a little monotonous along the canal. It will be flat. I hope there will be some difficulties in Bourges and upon arrival in Vierzon.”*

Hoping that the Berry canal will not constitute a bottleneck, especially in the half-marathon. The relatively narrow banks of the canal posed a small headache for the rescue services. Civil protection will have intervention teams to evacuate people who are injured by quad. Franck Bonnaud is not worried: “There will really be people everywhere. Refreshments are also provided every five kilometers and volunteers along the route will have emergency telephones. The safety of competitors is obviously at the heart of our concerns.” 300 volunteers are mobilized. And why not a sustainability of the event : it could then be labeled. Which is not the case this year.