Deal signals bright future

This year's Dublin City Marathon will offer a prize of €15,000 (£11,805) for the winners of the men's and women's races, with additional cash prizes of £1,000 and time bonuses for the top Irish finishers.

Details of the 22nd marathon, which has been boosted by a four-year sponsorship deal from Adidas worth over £500,000, were announced yesterday by the race director, Jim Aughney, who predicted the race is on the verge of eclipsing its halcyon period of the early 1980s.

"I believe the marathon will benefit immensely and the city will also be a very big winner, and indications are that the money coming into the capital over the October weekend will be in excess of £10 million."

Taking the opportunity to welcome a positive sporting announcement in the midst of what has been a particularly trying period for Irish sport, the Minister for Sport Dr McDaid praised the attitude taken by all sporting bodies towards the foot-and-mouth scare.

"It would be remiss of me not to thank all sports for the wonderful co-operation they have shown in trying to get over this hardship. And I think that we are winning and that perhaps there is some light at the end of the tunnel." Last year, 8,890 people ran the Dublin marathon, the biggest field since the city millennial race of 1988. The race peaked in popularity shortly after its inception in 1980, when the discipline was something of a cultural phenomenon.

Over 11,000 competitors ran the streets in 1982, the year that Jerry Kiernan established the current Irish record of two hours, 13 minutes and 45 seconds. Although the race waned in popularity around the turn of the last decade, it has been firmly on the ascent in recent years and yesterday Aughney predicted a phase of unprecedented success.

"I was asked not so long ago how big the Dublin marathon could be. My answer at the time was: `How many people can you fit on O'Connell street?' I'm glad to say I was very wrong because we outgrew O'Connell street last year and had to move our start and finish to Smithfield. So now my answer is: `How many people can you fit along the quays?' With this sponsorship, Dublin will become one of the elite marathons in the world."

Twelve Irish women have won the Dublin marathon in the past, with 11 Irish triumphs in the men's race. The past decade has seen a steady rise in overseas interest, with over 50 nationalities lining up for last year's race, which was won by Sonia O'Sullivan and Simon Pride.