The emblematic test will take place on April 22 and, like the previous editions, will have 4,000 participants
The period to participate in the twelfth edition of the Ruta de las Fortalezas de Cartagena, which takes place on April 22, is now open and runs through January 23, municipal sources said in a statement.
Those interested in registering for this popular sporting event can do so through the website ‘rutadelasfortalezas.es’.
This was announced on Friday by the mayor, Noelia Arroyo, at a press conference in which she was accompanied by the chief admiral of the Arsenal of Cartagena, Pedro de la Puente, and the colonel director of the Marine Infantry School and director of evidence, Adolf Morales .
Like previous editions, there will be 4,000 people who can complete the 50-kilometer overall test; 350 the promotion race, of 25 kilometers; one hundred young people, 14.4 kilometers, and 350 children, 2.7 kilometers.
One of the novelties of this edition is an application for real-time monitoring of runners’ progress, both at the finish line and at each of the checkpoints. “The results and the winners can be consulted immediately,” said Morales, who was in charge of giving details of the test.
All applications received will participate in a lottery to select the 4,000 participants for this edition. Last year there were 8,082 registrations and only half got a place.
The payment term starts from that moment. The more detailed ‘track’ will be released on March 29. Finally, on Saturday 22 April, the route of the Forts will be ridden and the day before, on 21 April, the children’s test will take place.
The participation fee is 40 euros, in the case of the general test; 35 euros for the promotional version; 15 euros for the youth and eight for the children. “These are affordable prices and much cheaper than other tests of the same category as this one in our country,” Morales said.
Entries for this test come from all over the country. “We want to strengthen its national projection. It is one of the goals we must achieve in the coming years,” noted the colonel director of the Marine Infantry School and director of the test.
As curious notes from the 2022 tests, the oldest runner was 77 years old, and the group with the highest number of participants was 41 to 50 years old. Of the 4,000 runners, 2,916 completed the test and 843 took less than seven hours.
This event, organized by the Navy and the City Council of Cartagena, will ensure a security deployment involving more than 750 troops, including military and civilians, as well as 126 vehicles and a helicopter.
More than 100 health professionals will attend the test, with 67 students contributing as support. In addition, there are 143 volunteers spread along the route. In all, nearly 550 soldiers and more than 200 civilians.
As for the money raised, in 2022, 50,000 euros have been donated to various associations. More than 410,000 euros have been donated in these eleven editions.
De la Puente stressed that this test serves to “strengthen the relationship between the armed forces and the City Council of Cartagena, also as a grain of sand that we use to raise Cartagena’s image in the rest of Spain.”
«The route of the forts is strictly solidarity in nature. There is no profit here and all the money is raised for solidarity purposes in Cartagena,” he noted.
For his part, Arroyo noted that “there is no other breed like this in Spain. The secret of the success of this sporting event is precisely that it passes through the coastal landscapes dotted with those defensive elements, such as the fortresses, that have already become monuments. The competition offers athletes the opportunity to run on trails that are closed for safety for the rest of the year.
“The Route of the Forts is a gift that the Marine Corps gives to Cartagena and one that only the Navy can give us. It is because they open their facilities to us and because our Marine Corps has better experience in logistics,” the mayor said gratefully.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
