₦airaland Forum

I am glad to announce that I participated in the 2026 edition of the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon and completed the 10KM race in under 45 minutes.

Honestly, I believe I could have done better because I usually run 42KM. However, it has been over three months since I last trained seriously, and I did not even prepare specifically for this race. That was why I decided to go for the 10KM this time. To be sincere, it was not too difficult.

I arrived very early at the finishing venue at Eko Atlantic. We had enough time to stretch and relax properly. At that time, even the invited artists had not yet mounted the stage.

The winner of this year’s full marathon was Ezra Kipchumba Kering of Kenya, finishing with a time of 2:11:55.

The 40KM route was moved to the Coastal Road instead of the usual National Stadium through Third Mainland Bridge and Ikoyi Link Bridge route. However, the 10KM route remained the same.

Different gifts and prizes were presented to the winners, many of whom were East Africans. Plateau State athletes also performed very well. The state sponsored them, and they clinched prizes in the 10KM category.

One major challenge was the medal collection process for runners who finished later. Queues were not properly maintained. People rushed to collect medals, and it became chaotic. Many participants were yet to receive theirs as at the time I left.

Generally, it was a great experience. More people participated this time around: plenty of Chinese, English, Americans, and other Africans. Kudos to the organizers.

Congratulations to Odewale Adesoye (A. K. A. Green Man).