SWISSCITYMARATHON-LUCERNE TO BE HONOURED WITH 2018 AIMS GREEN AWARD
The race from Lucerne, Switzerland will be recognised at the 2018 AIMS Best Marathon Runner Gala
The global distance running organisation, the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) are pleased to announce the SwissCityMarathon-Lucerne (https://www.swisscitymarathon.ch/en/) will receive the 2018 AIMS Green Award. The award which recognises excellence in environmental practice will be presented to the race from Lucerne, Switzerland at the sixth annual AIMS ‘Best Marathon Runner’ (BMR) Awards Gala to be held in the birth place of the Marathon in Athens, Greece on Friday 9 November 2018.
Candidates for the AIMS Green Award are judged on the impact the race has had on promoting environmentally friendly practices in marathon events, how volunteers contribute to the success of the project and the ability for the race to educate younger generations about the benefits of sport and environmental protection.
The two other shortlisted races were the Marine Corps Marathon (USA) and the Silesia Marathon (Poland).
The SwissCityMarathon-Lucerne aims to organise a sustainable event based on three dimensions – society, economy and environment. Society – The race supports charity projects through UNICEF and thanks to the cooperation with the Max Havelaar Foundation (http://maxhavelaar.nl/english), products bearing the Fairtrade label are used. Economy – Local suppliers and companies are used when possible and the local running community is maintained year-round.
A comprehensive environmental policy and plan are in place and along with the existence of a dedicated person, ensure that environmental measures are incorporated throughout the race. Unnecessary emissions such as waste, noise, water and air pollution are avoided whenever possible. 75% of the CO2 emissions caused during the SwissCityMarathon originate from the travel of the participants. Thanks to the SwissRunners ticket, traveling from all over Switzerland to the event and back is free for participants. The fire hydrants in town are supplied with clean drinking water and this is used for the hydration points serving the runners.. The SwissCityMarathon-Lucerne offer participants the chance to donate towards CO2 compensation upon registering for the race, supporting the Swiss project of forest management operated by the company "Oberallmeindkorporation (OAK)" (http://oak-schwyz.ch/).
Reto Schorno, CEO of the SwissCity Marathon comments: “It is a great honour to be given this award. We are very proud of our environmental initiatives such as our runners receiving free public transportation and so many of our runners supporting the fostering of forestry. We would like to thank AIMS and its members for presenting us with this award.”
Paco Borao, President of AIMS commented: “Everyone at AIMS is looking forward to welcoming the SwissCityMarathon-Lucerne to Athens to receive their award. They are on track to succeed in their ambition of hosting a sustainable race for years to come.”
About the AIMS Green Award
AIMS has been honouring races with the AIMS Green Award that have shown exceptional work in this area since 2013. However, AIMS intention is not only to honour ‘environmental initiatives’ of its members, but also to help them improve their races, in terms of good environmental practices during their marathon events. To this end, AIMS in collaboration with the Institute Team for the World Environmental Alliance 2004+, a scientific non-governmental not-for-profit organisation headed by Mr. George Kazantzopoulos, former Member of the IOC Sport & Environment Commission, has established a set of environmental guidelines, in line with the IOC Olympic Movement’s Agenda 21** and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, over and above the creation of the AIMS Green Award.
Previous Recipients of the AIMS Green Award
2013 - SuisseGas Milano Marathon (Italy)
2014 – BMW Frankfurt Marathon (Germany)
2015 – Chevron Houston Marathon (USA)
2016 - GöteborgsVarvet Half Marathon (Sweden)
2017 – Sanlam Cape Town Marathon (South Africa)
About the AIMS ‘Best Marathon Runner’ Awards Gala
The purpose of the BMR Award Gala is to:
I. Announce and honour the best male and female Marathon runners of the year through the AIMS BEST MARATHON RUNNER (BMR) Award.
II. Recognise and honour exceptional Marathon figureheads and personalities for their contribution to the development of the Marathon movement.
III. Publicise and promote the best practice and initiatives of AIMS members (450+ race organisers) through the establishment of special environmental and social awards.
IV. Enhance the role, programs and services of AIMS.
The event will be staged in Athens, Greece on Friday 9 November 2018 and is co-organised with the Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS), ‘Athens Marathon. The Authentic.’ and the Region of Attica, held under the kind sponsorship of the ‘Greek National Tourism Organisation’ and ‘Athens International Airport’.
About the SwissCityMarathon - Lucerne
The SwissCityMarathon is a running festival of over 10,000 finishers held in the world-famous town of Lucerne, Switzerland. In addition to the marathon, the program also includes a half marathon, a 10 km run and a duo marathon. With 6,345 finishers in 2018, the SwissCityMarathon Lucerne is the largest half marathon in Switzerland.
The next SwissCityMarathon - Lucerne will take place on October 27, 2019.
About the Max Havelaar Foundation
The Max Havelaar foundation is an independent non-profit organisation that licenses use of the Fairtrade Certification Mark on products in the Netherlands in accordance with internationally agreed Fairtrade standards. Through national campaigns, we drive awareness of the importance of fair trade with businesses as well as consumers. Max Havelaar is part of a larger international movement and one of 19 national Fairtrade organisations covering 24 countries.
To read more about Fairtrade International, visit www.fairtrade.net
