‘The People’s Reaction Says Enough’: Malta Marathon Organiser Says Amid TM Marathon Backlash
Malta Marathon’s organiser Joseph Micallef has spoken out amid national backlash from the public towards the Tran|Sport Malta Charity Marathon announcement.
This comes after the recent news of the Malta Marathon being cancelled due to Transport Malta (TM) not granting the permit for the usual route taken, only for the government to then announce their own marathon shortly after.
“There’s not much for me to say – but the people’s comments reacting to the government’s announcement of the new marathon say enough,” Micallef said.
“The comments and reactions I saw once I went into Facebook surprised me, even the comments on the Minister’s post himself, they all seem to be against the decision,” he said.
“It also hardly seems like a coincidence to me that for the first time since 2009 the permit for the same identical route taken was met with this much resistance, to the point that the marathon was indeed called off,” he said.
“I’ve never had a problem with getting the go-ahead, but for some reason, this changed this year,” he said.
He also expressed his disappointment at the authorities not trusting his judgment after having so much experience in the field, having organised the Malta Marathon for 30 years now.
“I hope that they use the route that they were suggesting, so they see what a disaster they were trying to impose,” he said.
Micallef stressed that the route that Transport Malta was trying to impose was dangerous and unacceptable. The route was also declared unacceptable by Malta Red Cross, Mater Dei Emergency Department, and the Malta Traffic Police, due to safety concerns.
Transport Malta’s proposal for the route also went against Malta’s highway code, which clearly states that running should be done against traffic, not towards, as TM’s route was suggesting.
It was at this point that Micallef decided to call off the marathon entirely, as he refused to bear the dangers and safety issues that TM’s route was riddled with.
Many people expressed their anger as soon as TM announced their replacement marathon, with many labelling it as “another electoral gimmick” and a “farce”.
“So first Transport Malta make it impossible for the Malta marathon organisers to organise the event that they’ve been organising for years, and a day later this is announced, in an attempt to “save the day” for Malta’s running community? Which is set to be held in 2 weeks? What a joke,” said one woman.
“Shameful, forced state takeover of a classic race that has successfully been organized by competent people for the past 30 years!” another said.
What do you make of the organiser’s comments?
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