UIPM 2019 Global Laser Run City Tour: All aboard in Tenkodogo and Garango (BUR)

There is only so far a young athlete can run in one day, so organisers in Burkina Faso arranged for a police bus to transport Laser Run participants from one city to another on July 6.

After making the decision to maximise their development opportunity by splitting the country’s first Global Laser Run City Tour between two cities, the National Federation of Burkina Faso enlisted the help of the law to make the 20km journey across the Boulgou province.

In the morning, 150 people took part in age categories from Under 11 to senior in Garango, before athletes boarded the police bus to join a group of 90 taking part in the provincial capital, Tenkodogo.

The competition in Garango was attended by three Regional Directors and two representatives of the Ministry of Sports in Garango, while the Governor, the President of the Regional Council and the Mayor of Tenkodogo savoured their first taste of Laser Run in the afternoon.

A spokesperson for the local organising committee said: “The authorities liked it and they promised to stage a Laser Run demonstration in the Independence Day commemoration programme scheduled for 11 December in Tenkodogo.”

The first GLRCT in Burkina Faso stimulated the creation of Modern Pentathlon clubs in Ouahigouya, Tenkodogo and Garango.

The local spokesperson said: “We took a lot of satisfaction from the number of young participants and the level of their performance. 

“The level of competition was impressive and the day was especially animated by the involvement of students from the National School of Police.”

The Global Laser Run City Tour was created in 2017 to provide an entry point to UIPM Sports for people of all ages in urban communities around the world.

Another 100 cities have been selected in 2019 as hosts of the GLRCT or the Biathle/Triathle National Tour. The full calendar can be viewed at the UIPM website, where you can also find more information on UIPM’s various multi-discipline sports.

In September, the UIPM Laser Run World Championships will be incorporated into the Pentathlon World Championships for the first time in Budapest (HUN), where Laser Run is also on the programme for the 1st World Urban Games.

In December, Laser Run and Triathle will both feature for the first time in the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in the Philippines.

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