1919 People Run From Izmir to Their 'Ancestor'

Organized by İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, İzmir 19 May Road Race was held for the 9th time. 10 athletes of all ages participated in the 1919 km run in memory of the year Atatürk went to Samsun.

The 19th Izmir May 9 Road Race, organized by the Izmir Metropolitan Municipality to commemorate the 19 May Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day, witnessed great excitement. 1919 people participated in the race, which was held to represent the year the great leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk went to Samsun. Athletes who started running from Cumhuriyet Square passed through Mustafa Kemal Sahil Boulevard and returned from Sadık Bey Tram Stop. The run was completed in Cumhuriyet Square.

İzmir Metropolitan Municipality Deputy Secretary General Ertuğrul Tugay, İzmir Metropolitan Municipality Youth and Sports Club President Ersan Odaman and Metropolitan Municipality administrators presented the awards to those who ranked in the 14-18 age, 19-35 age, 36-75+ age categories. As part of the 19 May events, 5 kilometers of skating and skateboarding were also held as trial races.
Expressing that it was a very enjoyable day, İzmir Metropolitan Municipality Deputy Secretary General Ertuğrul Tugay said, “It was a very meaningful race on a beautiful İzmir morning. It was very enjoyable to run for this meaningful day. The road race, which was held to commemorate the 103rd anniversary of our Ata's departure to Samsun, was a race held in different categories. Let it be a gift for our youth. Let there be hope for Izmir, for Turkey. These meaningful days bring us joy.”

Ersan Odaman, President of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Youth and Sports Club, said, “May 19 is a day given to us by our Ata. Having such an intense participation is a special beauty. We organized the last race of the Izmir Metropolitan Municipality road races this term. A running culture began to emerge in İzmir. The people of Izmir attend every event we organize with a significant number of participants," he said.
Mayor of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Tunç SoyerThe race, organized in line with the vision of encouraging young people to participate in sports and making İzmir a city of youth and sports, is the first and only road race in Turkey to be awarded in the 14-35 age category.