Benidorm hosts the Alicante team that will run the Marathon des Sables, one of the strongest tests on the planet
The test travels 250 km along the Sahara in 6 stages at temperatures above 40 °
This morning it has been presented the team from Alicante that will represent the 32nd edition of the Marathon des Sables, considered one of the strongest races in the world: 250 kilometers, in 6 stages in the Sahara desert. The event has gathered representatives of the tourism sector in Don Pancho Hotel in the city, such as the General Director of Tourism, Raquel Huete; the president of Hosbec, Toni Mayor, representatives of the sponsoring companies and athletes in an event that has been closed by the acting mayor of Benidorm and councilor for Sports, Ana Pellicer.
The meeting was attended by three representatives of the team from Alicante, Francisco Javier López, Miguel Ángel Cayuela and Antonio García that make up the TDAH team Antonio Garcí a, an association of protection for children suffering from Anaphylactic Deficiency Disorder and Hyperactivity, autism and asperger. The three athletes will run the test unselfishly and will offer all the benefits in full to the entity.
Ana Pellicer in her speech recalled that if "any excuse is good for sport" to do it for a cause of solidarity "is doubly positive" and has shown her admiration for the courage and determination of the three athletes who will fight in "one of the hardest tests on the planet. " Pellicer thanked "on behalf of the whole corporation" the support of the sport by the sponsors and ended wishing everyone "good luck".
The three riders, with a wide sports curriculum behind them, will have to cross the 250 kilometers carrying only backpacks with food of every day. The organization only provides the water they will need: approximately 9 liters per day, tents where they will spend the nights and also the logistics so that they can communicate with the outside if necessary. For this edition, which will start on April 7, there are already 1,200 participants from 50 different nationalities who must run under temperatures many times higher than 40º. In all these years, only one Spaniard has managed to win the race, in 2010, Mònica Aguilera from Barcelona.