It didn’t take long into this year’s race before clusters of people gathered at the first fluid control on Torsgatan. A low pressure from the tanker meant that participants had to queue for water while officials rushed back and forth with buckets to the tables. Some were left without refills.
– It’s a tank truck that didn’t quite manage to pump out water at the rate needed, says Lorenzo Nesi, press manager for the Stockholm Marathon.
Per-Ola Bengtsson, responsible for liquid control 5 at Karlaplan, tells SVT’s dispatcher that the water hoses do not attach well enough to the tanker.
– We should have had another hose, he says.
The runners may have to wait
It is unclear if the hoses will be able to be replaced with ones with a better flow. According to Per-Ola Bengtsson, there is no shortage of either water or sports drinks.
– It may happen that the runners have to stop and wait for a while, but unfortunately you have to put up with that. We work on everything we can, he says.
There are a total of 17 fluid controls deployed along the course. SVT has also received information that there are “very long queues” for other fluid controls at other locations along the course.
Help from water posts
According to David Fridell, operations manager for the Marathon group, the situation has improved during the course of the race.
– We had problems with the flow from the hoses, but we have supplemented with water from water points that are on site. It is Stockholm’s water that is in the street for fire trucks and others, he says.
The temperature is expected to rise to over 25 degrees during this year’s marathon. Before the race, the heat has been in focus, where the participants have been asked to take it more calmly than usual and to fill up with fluids to reduce the risks of collapse.
During the Gothenburg round two weeks ago, one man died and several others collapsed due to the heat.
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Runners struggle to get water. Photo: Anna-Klara Bankel