Running News Daily

Spanish marathoner pushes manual wheelchair to world record at Valencia Marathon

Eric Domingo Roldan of Spain wanted to do something special to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis (MS) and to honour his mother, who suffers from the disease. On Dec. 4, and his mother Sylvia set a Guinness World Record for the fastest marathon while pushing someone in a wheelchair. Roldan ran 2:52:39 to break the previous record by 49 seconds.

Roldan had ambitions to go under two hours and 50 minutes, but his main objective was to raise awareness about MS, which has been part of his mother’s day-to-day life for some time.

The previous record Roldan broke was his own, which he set with his mother at the 2021 Barcelona Marathon (2:53:28). He said on Instagram that he was on pace to go under two hours and 50 minutes, but a problem with one of the wheels around the 35-kilometre mark made it harder for him to push.

Roldan conquered his goal of raising three thousand euros for the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation. The wheelchair used by Roldan was not the typical sport-style wheelchair designed for racing, instead, Guinness requires a manual wheelchair to be used for record-breaking purposes.

“There are no words to describe our emotions today. It was something magical,” Roldan wrote on Instagram. “My mother is my motivation! She inspires me to be a better person. We will continue to run together and celebrate life.”

Kenya’s runner, Kelvin Kiptum, 23, won the 2022 Valencia Marathon in 2:01:53 in his debut, while Ethiopia’s Amane Beriso, 31, was a surprise win on the women’s side in 2:14:58, becoming the third-fastest woman in history.