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Welcome to the city

The organisers announced at the start of the stage that since the road from Gawler to Adelaide is two-laned and there are many traffic lights on the way, this particular stage won't count for the competition. They also warned the competitors to run in a group so that there would be less trouble with the protection of the runners.

It was interesting to see Anatoliy Kruglikov run with the Germans at the rear of the group. Strong wind made some of the competitors wear gloves. In fact, it was so cold that some of the runners put windjackets over their track suits to keep them warm. The first sun rays made the air warmer and it became clear immediately that there was a hot day ahead. Heavy traffic from Gawler to the suburbs of Adelaide made it difficult for the organisers to secure enough drinks for the runners on time. Luckily, everything ran pretty much smoothly and all the runners managed to make it to the park surrounding the city centre. Police escort with cars and motorbikes was waiting for them there and convoyed them to the finish which was located in a park in the city centre.

TV and radio crews were anxiously waiting for the runners to arrive and they weren't waiting in vain, for the runners told them a lot of interesting stories about the race, and although Adelaide is a big city, it rarely happens that athlets provide such media attention. After the interviews the athlets got their blood taken, which was carried out by the Australian Sports Institute from Canberra.

Tomorrow, the runners will start off early, at 5:30, to avoid heavy traffic, because a lot of people decide to go shopping in the mourning. All kids of sports are popular in the mourning (tennis courts and golf courses are booked from the very early hours, while bowling is popular throughout the whole day), because the heat becomes unbearable later in the day. The sandy beaches are almost empty this time of the year, the sun is simply to strong in the summer, and only a few people could be seen there.

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