Half marathon starts early today

Local athletes preparing for the annual Round Rarotonga Road Race scheduled for September 22 will be able to gauge how their training is going through today’s half marathon run.

The 21km half marathon race will be held from the Tikioki triathlon site and all racers are encouraged to be at the site by 6.30am for registrations before the race takes off at 7am.

Motorists heading to the markets early this morning are urged to be extra careful on the roads through Takitumu as runners will race towards Muri for the first turn before heading back to the Saltwater Caf in Arorangi and back to the tri site for the second lap of the run, which will see runners return to Muri and head back to the Queen’s Representative’s for the final turn to head back to the Tikioki finish line.

For those who would rather have a lighter run this morning – a 10km course is also avaialbe.

The Hash House Harriers esky and the gorgeous lagoon will be at the end of the race to sooth sore muscles.

Meanwhile this year’s annual Round Rarotonga Road Race is shaping up to be one of the biggest in the races 35 year history.

So far 115 international runners have registered for the event with still more registering every day.

The week of running kicks off on September 20 with the fun run followed by the main round island run on September 22, the Hash birthday run on September 24 followed by the popular mass participation round the rock relay on September 25 and the neuters cross island run on September 26.