Dublin Marathon back after 'very bleak' outlook

Dublin Marathon race director Jim Aughney has admitted the event faced a 'very bleak' outlook before the arrival of Irish Life as title sponsor earlier this year

Tue, 10 May, 2022 - 12:53

Cathal Dennehy

Dublin Marathon race director Jim Aughney has admitted the event faced a “very bleak” outlook before the arrival of Irish Life as title sponsor earlier this year.

The race will make its return in October for the first time since 2019 with a record field size of 25,000. The 2020 edition was cancelled in May of that year, while the 2021 edition went south last July, the logistical nightmare of a mass-participation event proving a bridge too far given the restrictions in place at the time.

All those with an entry had the option to carry their place forward and Aughney says the “vast majority” chose that over a refund. But the decision to honour the same entry fees has meant the event faced financial difficulties.

“We have the entry fees from 2019 but the costs of 2022, and everyone knows the costs have risen considerably,” said Aughney. “We see with the quotes coming in, everything has gone up, 15-20% in places. The other problem is personnel: companies we’d get to build the big marquees and they only have half the staff they had. If we can get 2022 out of the way and have a new entry fee for 2023, that’s when that will apply.”

Aughney said that when previous sponsor KBC announced they were leaving, “there was a period we were very worried, when we might not have had a sponsor (for 2022) and there would have been a lot of things we wouldn’t be able to do.

“Without the commitment of Irish Life it would have been very bleak for us. They have a very good history of supporting athletics and will be a very good partner for the next couple of years.”

This year’s race will stick to the same course as in 2019, though there may be some changes to the start and finish given the increased field size. A whopping 35,000 applied for a place in the 2020 edition but the field was capped at 25,000 due to logistical reasons, and Aughney is again planning for a field of that size this year.

“There’s been a great energy at all the meetings,” he said. “It’s going to be a challenge, we haven’t been out on the streets since 2019, but the race series will wake us up and get us into race mode again.”

The event announced today that Olympians Catherina McKiernan and Mick Clohisey will act as the coaching team for the 2022 Irish Life Dublin Marathon and Race Series. The Olympic duo have developed training plans for all races in the series and the marathon and are part of the overall Runners’ Support Squad.

“It is a fantastic resource for runners who have signed up to participate in the Irish Life Dublin Marathon and Race Series to tap into the wealth of knowledge that both Mick and Catherina can provide,” said Aughney. “They will offer guidance and tips for runners of all abilities as they take on the journey to train for races ranging in distances from five miles to 26.2 miles.”

*Jim Aughney was speaking at the launch of the Irish Life Marathon and Race Series, Runners’ Support Squad. This initiative will provide expert advice from coaching to psychology to help runners to harness the power of support to achieve their goals. Entry is open for the Irish Life Dublin Race Series; 5 Mile, Fingal 10km, Frank Duffy 10-Mile and Half Marathon at IrishLifeDublinMarathon.ie. The Irish Life Dublin Marathon on Sunday 30th October is sold out.