The Venice Marathon Foreshadowed an Environmental Mess

Runners in the 2018 Venice Marathon faced hazardous conditions. The whole thing was a wet sloppy affair, but the flooding didn't stop there.

By RiverboatRon

Published 6 years ago in Wow

A view from Instagram user "christiano_kapo."

Runners reaching the end of a difficult marathon in Venice, Italy suddenly faced a new challenge. A high tide mixed with wind and rain gave the runners a foot or so of water to wade through. The conditions gave birth to many surreal scenes.

Marathon ( mais pas que ) de Venice !!! pic.twitter.com/qVPg9o0DBe
— RunHappy France (@RunHappy_fr) October 28, 2018

Live action shot in Venicez pic.twitter.com/HK0WOFI3PN
— Japan Running News (@JRNHeadlines) October 28, 2018

A RANA, A RANA!#VeniceMarathon @Venicemarathon pic.twitter.com/RHfoWFs22g
— Atleti Disagiati (@AtletiDisagiati) October 28, 2018

Gli eroici protagonisti di @Venicemarathon senza paura, in mezzo all’acqua alta.
Let’s go!#venicemarathon #runningwayoflife #runtherapy pic.twitter.com/fN5rut3rcu
— Runcard Italia (@RuncardItalia) October 28, 2018

Almost more impressive than the runners were the people who stood around to... watch running? Don't you have anything better to do with your day?

Meravigliosi i Runner di questa edizione della #venicemarathon che non si sono arresi neanche davanti all’acqua alta!! | @Venicemarathon #runners #HuaweiVenicemarathon pic.twitter.com/M7TyJuNkSV
— Elisabetta Poles (@betta_poles) October 28, 2018

Il nuoto paralimpico c’era già. Il nuoto paralimpico in carrozzina mancava. Eccolo #Venicemarathon PS: per i non madrelingua: “i sbrissa” = “scivolano” pic.twitter.com/bV3GqKlOXH
— Andrea Schiavon (@AskLouder) October 28, 2018

Look at that para-athlete go.

This is not the first time the Venetian marathon has been a bit of a sh*t show. Last year's race faced a mishap when runners were directed off-course by a motorcycle guide by a few hundred meters. The result was that an Italian man, Eyob Faniel, was the first to win the race for his country in over twenty years. That's not suspicious at all, Venice. You wet mess.

This year's winners were Ethiopia's Mekuant Ayenew Gebre for the men at 2:13:13 and Kenya's Angela Tanui for the women at 2:31:30.

Since the race, conditions have not improved. Venice is currently in a "code red" scenario facing the worst flooding the city has seen since 2012. The famous Saint Mark's Square is completely underwater.