Florence half-marathon & 10K, 2nd April 2023
As our youngest son, Jonathan, has lived in Florence for over 4 years now, we have been frequent visitors to this beautiful city, lockdowns permitting, and have got to know it and the surrounding Tuscan countryside reasonable well. However, until now, we had never entered a race there (other than running the local parkrun once).
It was Gill who spotted that there was a half-marathon and 10K race at the start of April, which was around the date that we were looking to go, so we planned our trip to be there for that weekend. Then the fun began … to enter a race in Italy, you need a medical certificate signed by a doctor to say that you are healthy and fit for competitive sport. This requires the following tests: medical-sports check-up, cardiac stress test (with electrocardiogram), urine test, spirometry test. Spirometry test? Me neither. Luckily, there is an exclusion for members of running clubs affiliated to national athletics bodies – as if England Athletics check anything other than whether you have paid! So we sent off our EA Membership cards – only to be told that, as they expired on 31st March, they weren’t valid for a race on 2nd April. With the chance of having next year’s card in time being precisely zero, David Lydall and David Devennie kindly signed a letter confirming that we had renewed our membership – this seemed to satisfy the organisers and we duly paid our entry fees.
Florence could be considered to the birthplace of the Renaissance and has many medieval churches and palaces. The Race HQ and entertainment was in the large piazza in front of one of them, the Basilica Santa Croce. Santa Croce was built around 1300 and is the resting place of some of Italy’s most famous people including Michelangelo, Galileo and Machiavelli. It made a great setting for pre and post-race activities and the finish line. We collected the numbers from there the day before, when we were also given the goodie bag and t-shirt.
On the day of the race, we woke up to a lovely morning with bright sunshine and no wind and walked/jogged the short distance from Jonathan’s to Santa Croce. Runners were already making their way to the start line around the corner beside the river, so we were going against the flow to leave our bag at the drop-off tent. It was then around the corner to the start line which was on the riverside. Most of the runners seemed to be in club vests and, although it was a friendly atmosphere, it had the feel of a serious race – more Blaydon than GNR.
The 10K and the half-marathon started together and included some running the half as a 2-person relay. I knew that I wasn’t as well prepared as I should have been due to a woeful lack of mileage, my dodgy knees had been giving me grief and it was the end of a week of holiday eating and drinking (note to our recent C25K graduates and newer runners: getting your excuses ready is an important part of race preparation!). So I positioned myself in the middle of the pack and Gill, similarly concerned as she had injured her knee in the week, went towards the back.
Then we were off, heading east to the next bridge where we crossed the Arno and turned back on ourselves. There were plenty of pacers running in groups with balloons but they all seemed to start fairly near the front, so I passed the 2:15 group and progressed to catch the 1:40 pacers around the 1km marker. I thought about staying with them for a while, but it felt a bit slow so I gradually pulled away. We then crossed back to the north bank of the river with good views of the Ponte Vecchio (built in the 14th century) to our left. We turned back towards the start before heading into the historic centre through narrow streets. Passing the Uffizi Gallery, we came out into Florence’s main square, Piazza della Signoria in front of the Palazzo Vecchio (also 14th century). Normally crowded with tourists, it felt great to run across unhindered, especially as our Jonathan was there to support. The next landmark was the magnificent Duomo, then a quick turn back to the Piazza della Republica, through the arch and more history back down towards the Arno again. There was a loop out through less touristy streets, before turning back onto the banks of the river around the 5K marker.
By now I was part of a large group following the 1:35 balloons. I thought it would be sensible to stay with them for a while, but it was quite crowded so I ran alongside the front balloon. We crossed the river again to the south bank and headed west towards the old city walls. I thought the pace had picked up and realised why as we went through the old gate and my chosen pacer dived around the wall for a wee! So I was now ahead of the 1:35 balloons!
Another loop and we were re-entered the old city through the Porta San Frediano. This was very familiar running territory to me as it is the Oltrarno, Jonathan’s area. It was great to be able to run through these familiar streets without having to dodge pedestrians, kamikaze cyclists and maniacs on motor bikes and scooters! Though the stone-paved roads are fairly unforgiving on the legs.
It was back up to the city walls at the Porta Romana, a sharp turn and a straight run down to the next bridge over the river – this time with views of the Ponte Vecchio to our right. A right turn along the river and it was lap one completed. Back around the sights of Florence, before turning into the Piazza Santa Croce and the finish line.
At the finish we got a medal and then there were tables full of drinks – water, tea, fruit juice; slices of apples, bananas and oranges; croissants and pastries. Most welcome they were too! I was very happy with my time of 1:33:05, much better than I expected. My age category was “argento maschile”, which translates to “silver male”. I am not quite sure of the categorisation, probably for the over 60s, but there were prizes for the first 5 – I finished 6th!
Gill’s race had been billed as a non-competitive 10K, though the race description said it would be 10.5K. Looking at the route map, we were surprised to see the 11K marker before the end – in fact the race was about 11.5K. It turned out that “non-competitive” meant that you didn’t get a time or a medal, but Gill was very happy with her run. At €7, it was certainly great value for a t-shirt, goodie bag, run and post-race refreshment.
Florence is a great destination – history, art, architecture, good food and wine, all surrounded by hills, olive groves and beautiful countryside. The course is probably the flattest that I have ever run, so definitely one for those looking for a fast time. So whether you are looking for a PB or just somewhere to enjoy a run while on holiday, I would recommend the Half-Marathon Firenze.
