The experience of Barranca runners at the Quindío Half Marathon
A group of amateur runners traveled nearly 600 kilometers from the banks of the Magdalena River to Barrancabermeja to enjoy the Quindío Half Marathon, and one of them wanted to share their story. You can also share yours, so we can publish it on our website.
By Wilson Lozano
Social communicator and amateur athlete
Sitting at the gates of their farms, enjoying a cool, 18-degree morning, sipping steaming, fragrant coffee, or sharing water, encouragement, and smiles, the residents of Montenegro, Pueblo Tapao, and La Tebaida cheered on the 3,400 participants in the first Quindío Half Marathon, who passed before their eyes, breathing hard, slowly, and quickly, dressed in a thousand shapes and colors.
A race in a rural area, without the anguish of urban drivers' misfortunes, and with a guaranteed happy ending in the National Coffee Park, founded in 1995 by the National Federation of Coffee Growers. The park spans 96 hectares to showcase and educate about this culture, with a museum, a world coffee garden, and a tribute to the harvest, six replicas of Quimbaya culture graves, threshers, and roasters; and regional flora such as orchids, heliconias, and ferns.
The park features a 22-meter-high observation deck, two cable cars, three roller coasters, boats, bumper cars, and horseback riding, among other 40 attractions. Located in Montenegro, a municipality 12 kilometers from Armenia, the capital of Quindío, it was founded in 1892. The average temperature is 21 degrees Celsius, and the park sits at an altitude of 1,294 meters above sea level. In 2020, it had 42,000 inhabitants across an area of 149 square kilometers.
The economy is based on agriculture, primarily coffee, but also fruit and bread crops, handicrafts, and agrotourism on coffee farms. Sports tourism has been added since March 26, 2023.
From this municipality, it's a 40-minute drive to Salento, another historic coffee-growing town—the liberator Simón Bolívar once slept here—and a tourist destination. A good hour's drive takes you to the protected area of the Nevados National Natural Park, the Cocora Valley, where you can see some species of the wax palm, Colombia's national tree, which can reach heights of up to 60 meters.
And amidst this atmosphere, the start of the various events of the Quindío Half Marathon began at 6:00 a.m., enlivened by the coffee-growing folklore and a performance by the Willis jeepers, the region's transportation kings. Three cannon shots with blanks were the starting signal. There was only one mistake at the 10k start, perhaps due to a lack of experience, but nothing that can't be corrected.
Let it look like a party
"Let's make it look like a party!" shouted a local athlete with whom we shared several miles in a Paisa accent as we passed by. And the noise wasn't long in coming. Generally, they were cheerful, friendly, and articulate people.
I was one of 1,322 elite and amateur athletes who ran the 21.6 kilometers of the MMQ, which took place on a 10k course, along a rolling road in 90 percent humidity. The course was easy to descend but somewhat more challenging to climb at a strong, consistent pace. One of the highlights of the race is that you have the opportunity to see and cheer on your teammates and friends because the route is an out-and-back route.
The logistics, road closures, hydration, measurement, and results delivered to each participant were very satisfactory. The Quindío Half Marathon undoubtedly represents a very high challenge.
We hope you'll allow us to repay some of the attention you've shown us on August 20th when we hold the Half Marathon of the Sun in Barrancabermeja, Santander, to which you're cordially invited.
The race
The Quindío Half Marathon had a dream debut, held on March 26th. 3,400 participants from Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, the Dominican Republic, the United States, Spain, and the Netherlands. Seven thousand tourists and four examples for the world of Colombian athletics.
The practice of plogging, or collecting the waste that we athletes leave behind, also includes jogging, but in the final stretch. The race also contributes to reducing the carbon footprint by planting a thousand trees. The race's profits will be donated to the Western Oncology Foundation, and it is the first long-distance race in a setting like the National Coffee Park.
Official results and times
National marathon record holder Jeissón Suárez was the main attraction among the elite group of athletes. They had planned to run the course as part of their marathon preparation, but suffered a strain in one of his calves, which forced him to withdraw at the new kilometer mark to avoid injury.
His goal is to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics, and to achieve that, he must take care of his training, explained the Tolima native, which is why he decided to stop.
With a clear path in the freestyle category, Andrés Camilo Camargo Guarín won the 21 km race with a time of 1:07:12. Second place went to Carlos Mario Patiño Barco with a time of 1:08:59, and third place went to Miguel Ángel Amador Montilla with a time of 1:10:54.
In the women's open category, first place went to Ana Milena Orjuela, with a time of 1:20:24. Second place went to Lineida Mateus Rojas from Santander, with a time of 1:22:21, and third place went to Briyith Forero, with a time of 1:25:09.
The Corredera Club of Barrancabermeja
Barrancabermeja was represented by around 30 runners, most of them from the Corredera Club. The overall result was positive because we all finished the races, with a few less sore nails and muscle pains, as is often the case, but without any major incidents, and above all, we were happy. The expressions were of joy because most of us beat our target times for the distances we ran.
These are some of the records:
5k 424 participants
Matthias Pinzón: 22:29. Overall position 15. Gender position 14.
Alcira K. Ramírez Arteaga 32:13. Overall position 126. Gender position 62
10k 1633 participants
Master A
Francisco Gómez Almeida: 47:58. Overall position 99. Gender position 91. Category position 22
Men's Freestyle
Emmanuel Cardona: 48:08. Overall position 110. Gender position 99. Category position 67
Men's Master B
Raúl Acosta Coley: 51:37. Overall position 208. Gender position 179. Category position 10
Men's Master C
Hector Valencia: 1:08:19. Overall position 1,062. Gender position 595. Category position 21.
Women's Freestyle
Liliana Gloria Palencia: 57:50. Overall position 455. Gender position 106. Category position 85
Women's Master A
Jackelin Charris Rangel: 1:01:57. Overall position 687. Gender position 221.
21k 1,322 participants
Master B
José Velandia Ramírez: 1:34:47. Overall position 76. Gender position 72. Category position 9
Wilson Lozano: 1:39.22. Overall position 130. Gender position 121. Category position 14
Master A
John Manuel Riascos: 1:39:46. Overall position 141. Gender position 130. Category position 25
Women's Freestyle
Marjorie Arteaga: 1:41:11. .General position 161. Gender position 14. Category position 12
Men's Freestyle
Saúl Sánchez Mantilla: 1:54:00. Overall position 420. Gender position 348. Category position 244.