High Altitude Athletics Club set to dominate ECOWAS marathon

High Altitude Athletics Club set to dominate ECOWAS marathon

The High Altitude Athletics Club of Jos, one of Nigeria’s premier athletics clubs, has announced its intention to send 25 elite athletes to the upcoming 2023 ECOWAS Abuja International Marathon.

“The ECOWAS race is an excellent platform for our athletes to showcase their talent,” remarked Steve Nuhu, the club’s coordinator and a mentor to numerous long-distance runners in Nigeria.

Nuhu expressed confidence in his team’s ability to sweep the podium, particularly in the women’s category.

 “Our athletes have been training diligently and are determined to achieve this goal,” he stated.

The ECOWAS Abuja International Marathon, scheduled for December 16, 2023, features two categories, a half marathon and a five-kilometre fun run.

The half-marathon winner will receive a cash prize of $10,000, while the second and third-place finishers will earn $5,000 and $4,000, respectively.

The top 10 finishers will receive generous prize money, with the fourth place receiving $3,500, fifth place $3,000, sixth place $2,500, seventh place $2,000, eighth place $1,500, ninth place $1,200, and tenth place $1,000.

The winners of the five-km family and fun run will receive $750, the second-place finishers $500 and the third-place finishers will get $400, with the fifth-place finishers receiving $200.

“We at the High Altitude Athletics Club are thrilled about the ECOWAS Abuja International Marathon,” Nuhu stated. “This provides another international stage for our athletes. We have already registered 25 elite athletes, and many fun runners are joining us from Jos.”

While expressing gratitude to ECOWAS for providing opportunities for runners not only in Nigeria but across the sub-region, Nuhu appealed to northern states’ governors to invest in marathon races.

“We applaud ECOWAS’s efforts to promote marathon races in the sub-region. Our appeal goes out to governors, particularly in Northern Nigeria, to take up this responsibility and help our country realize its immense potential in long-distance running. With the right investment in our Northern talents, we can soon compete with Kenyans, Ethiopians, and others,” Nuhu concluded.