60,000 Runners Set For Access Bank Lagos City Marathon 2023 Elite Label, Says Yusuf Ali

The 2023 edition of the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon will see over 60,000 runners take to the Lagos roads to  compete for honours in the Elite Label race, as the status of the Lagos City Marathon rises.

The General Manager of the race organised by Nigeria's first class sports management company, Nilayo Sports Management Company, Yusuf Ali, said Tuesday in Lagos, that, the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon because of special characteristics of the Elite Label race having more runners, the 2023 Lagos City Marathon will see over 60,000 first class runners compete for honours in the race scheduled for February 4, 2023.

Yusuf revealed that, as the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon organises its' first ever World Atletics Elite Label Marathon in Lagos in this part of the world, the organisers would at the sametime be gunning for the attainment of a Platinuum Label race status for the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon.

Yusuf, a former African record holder in the Long Jump event for 27 years, noted that, the target of the organisers, Nilayo Sports Management Limited, is to in a very short period have two Elite Labem races in one single city at the same time, with the 10kilometre race also attaining the Label Elite status.

'With this, this year's 10km race will be opened to as many Elite runners from across Africa and the world as possible, to raise the race's status towards attaining the Elite Label status in the 10km, in next few years. Our target is to have two Elite Label races in a single city running side by side both in the full and 10km races. While also working very hard to uplift the full Marathon that is already an Elite Label race to a Platinum Label race. 

"The Lagos City Marathon is already in auto drive. The Nilayo Sports Management Limited is ready for the large number of runners associated with the Elite Label races all over the world. Most Gold Label races in the world hosts between 50,000 to 80,000 runners.

"We are ready for the large number. Last year we had 20,000 runners, and for this year we are hoping to have over 20,000 more than last year's. The organisers, Nilayo Sports Management are equal to the task. In past Marathons, the company hosted Marathons that had 120,000 runners successfully. The vastly experienced organisers are equal to the task. 

"We are ready for the first Elite Label race in Nigeria on February 4," Yusuf Ali, said.