Svoj olympijský. triumf. v Los Angeles. predznamenal. v Košiciach skvelý. Juan Carlos Zabala, keď jeho traťový. rekord odolával. až do roku 1950.

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1 Juan Carlos ZABALA ARG 2:33:19 József GALAMBOS HUN 2:47:56 József GYETVAY HUN 2:51:52 Svoj olympijský triumf v Los Angeles predznamenal v Košiciach skvelý Juan Carlos Zabala, keď jeho traťový rekord odolával až do roku In Košice the brilliant Juan Carlos Zabala presaged his Olympic triumph in Los Angeles, and his new course record endured right until

2 P Predvojnová éra našla svojho ďalšieho hrdinu. Až z ďalekej Argentíny. Košickými ulicami sa ešte dlhé roky po víťazstve uzimeného dvadsaťročného mladíka v prúžkovanom tričku ozývalo: "Tempo, Zabala!" Tak, ako ho vtedy povzbudzovali. S Juanom Carlosom Zabalom chodil po svete škótsky tréner a manažér v jednej osobe "seňor" Stirling. Tak ho nazývala juhoamerická tlač. Možno preto, že si nebola naistom s jeho krstným menom. Podľa jedného prameňa Alexander, podľa iného zas Andrew, za oceánom prosto Alejandro. Tak ho oslovil aj otec košického maratónu Vojtech Bukovský v jednom z viedenských hotelov začiatkom jesene roku Stirling nechápal, prečo toľko nástojí na štarte jeho zverenca v Košiciach, keď ten ešte nikdy maratón nebežal. Prvý väčší rozruch vzbudil len pred niekoľkými dňami, práve vo Viedni, keď utvoril svetový rekord na tridsaťkilometrovej trati. Deň po svojich dvadsiatych narodeninách. Inak, meno Zabala vtedy nikomu veľa nehovorilo. O niekoľko dní dvojica cudzincov vystupovala z vlaku na perón košickej stanice. Lialo ani z krhly a útly Juhoameričan sa triasol od zimy ako osika. Obaja sa ubytovali v Grandhoteli Imperial na Mlynskej ulici. Zabalov zjav prekvapil i novinára, ktorý ho prepadol na izbe v túžbe po prvom interview. V Slovenskom východe napísal: "Zabala je typ Španiela, má čierne iskerné oči, je barnavej pleti, elegantne oblieknutý a hladko oholený. Jeho telesná konštrukcia je pomerne veľmi slabá a robí dojem dorástajúceho junáka." Zima ho drvila aj v deň pretekov. Nepomohla ani deka a piecka v šatni. Vraj nedobehne ani do cieľa, robili sa múdri skeptici. Pochybnosti začal vyvracať už po prvých kilometroch. Na piatom mal čas lepší o päť minút, než dosiahli dovtedy, na desiatom zaostával druhý Galambos už o dva kilometre, na tridsiatom bol iba o šesť sekúnd pomalší, než pri svojom svetovom rekorde vo Viedni. Rozhodcovia namerali Galambosovi už šestnásťminútovú stratu (!) a vydali sa Argentínčan Juan Carlos Zabala pritiahol v roku 1931 do Košíc mimoriadnu pozornosť. Prišli osobitní spravodajcovia časopisov "New York Herald" a "Manchester Guardian" z Londýna, zástupcovia maďarských i nemeckých časopisov, početne bola zastúpená tlač z Československa. Dokonca "odbočka" Rádiojournalu v Košiciach vysielala časť týchto pretekov z ihriska prenosom. Senzáciu šípil aj reportér najväčšieho juhoamerického športového časopisu El Mondo ( výtlačkov) a keď Zabala dobehol, od šiestej do jedenástej večer pretelefonoval 28-tisíc Kčs. Celé imanie! Aby už ráno čitatelia v Južnej Amerike našli v novinách poldruhastránkový referát. v otvorenom vojenskom aute opäť za Zabalom. Viditeľnosť sa zhoršila a maratónska trať sa halila do hmly. Žeby nezbadali, kedy ho predbehli? Zastavili pri jednom z míľnikov. Zo sivoty sa vynorila skupinka bežcov. Zabala v nej chýbal. Nezablúdil? Neodbočil azda omylom na cestu do Krásnej nad Hornádom? T The pre-war era did produce another hero, from as far away as Argentina, in fact. For long years after the victory of the shivering, twenty-year-old youth in the striped vest, the streets of Košice still echoed with the shout: Tempo, Zabala!. Just the way they cheered him on back then. Juan Carlos Zabala was accompanied everywhere in the world by his trainer and manager in one, seňor Stirling. That s what the South American press always called him. Possibly because they were never quite sure about his first name. One source had it as Alexander, another as Andrew, but over the ocean he was simply Alejandro. That was how Vojtech Bukovský, the father of the Košice Marathon, addressed him in one Viennese hotel at the beginning of autumn in Stirling couldn t understand why they were so keen to see his protégé run in Košice, as he had never actually done a marathon before. The first real excitement he had aroused was a few days before, in Vienna itself, when he set a new world record over the 30-kilometre distance. That was the day after his twentieth birthday. Apart from that, the name Zabala didn t really mean very much to anybody at that time. A few days later this pair of foreigners descended from the train onto the platform of Košice railway station. It was raining the proverbial cats and dogs and the slight South American s teeth rattled in the cold. They both took rooms at the Grandhotel Imperial on Mill Street. Zabala s appearance also surprised The Argentinian Juan Carlos Zabala attracted extraordinary attention to Košice in Special correspondents came from the New York Herald and from the Manchester Guardian in England, Hungarian and German periodicals sent representatives, and there were numerous journalists from the Czechoslovak media. Even the Košice branch of Rádiojournal broadcast part of the race direct from the sports-ground. The reporter of the biggest South American sports magazine El Mondo (3.5 million circulation) smelt a sensation after Zabala finished, and between six and eleven o clock in the evening he mounted up a telephone bill of Czechoslovak crowns an absolute fortune! Just so that readers in South America could find a one-and-a-half page report in the newspaper the next morning. the journalist who waylaid him in his room in the hope of a first interview. In the newspaper Slovenský východ he wrote: Zabala is the Spanish type with black, sparkling eyes and brown skin, he is elegantly dressed and clean-shaven. His physical build is relatively quite weak and he gives one the impression of an adolescent young man. He was perishing from cold on raceday too. Neither the blanket he wore nor the stove in his changing-room were any help. The sceptics boxed clever, reckoning he would never even make it to the finish 14

3 Nezostávalo iné, ako nasadnúť do auta a uháňať do Košíc. Na tachometri bolo aj osemdesiat. Stále nič. To už k bráne na ihrisku KAC zostávalo vari dvesto metrov. Vtedy šofér zočil v hmle osamotenú postavu. Časomerači si oddýchli. Pri cieľovej čiare boli predsa len skôr, než víťaz. Zastavili stopky, keď ňou prebehol a zhíkli úžasom. Ukazovali takmer o pätnásť minút lepší čas, než dovtedajší rekord Maďara Királyho spred šiestich rokov. Na druhý deň budapeštianske noviny komentovali veľké Zabalovo víťazstvo slovami: "V Košiciach nevedia merať čas a celý Zabala je podfuk." Tak, či onak, história zaznamenala skvelý rekord na košickej trati. Odolával plných devätnásť rokov, kým ho vymazal Švéd Gösta Leandersson. Dôkaz o svojej výnimočnosti dal všetkým pochybovačom sám Zabala. V auguste roku 1932 triumfoval v olympijskom maratóne v kalifornskom Los Angeles. Vytvoril olympijský rekord a stal sa najmladším olympijským víťazom v maratóne. Čo spôsobil jeho štart v Košiciach, dokumentuje úryvok z novín "La Prensa", vychádzajúcich v Buenos Aires: "Nadšenie obecenstva prepuklo pri behu Zabalu cez preplnené ulice, polícia ťažko udržala masy ľudí na chodníkoch. Po skončení behu, keď sa Zabala prechádzal po meste, ľudia ho na každom kroku zdravili, kývali mu a prejavovali radosť nad jeho rekordným výkonom." Akoby to bolo teraz, prežívame tú slávu s argentínskym novinárom. Zabala started confounding the doubters in the first few kilometres. At the fifth his time was five minutes faster than anything previously achieved, at the tenth Galambos in second place was already two kilometres behind, and at the thirtieth Zabala was only six seconds slower than his world record from Vienna. The judges timed Galambos deficit at all of 16 minutes (!) and they set out again in an open army jeep after Zabala. The marathon course was cloaked in fog, and visibility was bad indeed. What if they had overtaken him without noticing? They stopped at one of the mile-posts. A small group of runners emerged from the greyness, but Zabala was not among them. Could he have got lost? Could he possibly have turned off by mistake onto the Krásna nad Hornádom road? There was nothing for it but to get back into the jeep and dash to Košice. The speedometer went up to eighty, but there was still nothing. When there was only about 200 metres left to the gate of the KAC sportsground, the driver spotted a lonely figure in the fog. The time-keepers breathed a sigh of relief. They would reach the finishing line before the victor after all. They clicked their stop-watches as he crossed the line, and gasped in surprise. Their watches all showed a time which was almost fifteen minutes better than the existing record set by the Hungarian Király six years before. Next day the newspapers in Budapest commented on Zabala s great victory in these terms: In Košice they don t know how to time a race, and the whole Zabala business is a big con. One way or another, history had witnessed a brilliant record on the Košice course. It lasted for a full nineteen years, until it was wiped out by the Swede Gösta Leandersson. It was Zabala himself who presented all the doubters with the proof of his excellence. In August 1932 he triumphed in the Olympic marathon in Los Angeles, California. He set a new Olympic record, and became the youngest Olympic marathon winner. The effect of his running in Košice is documented in this excerpt from an article in La Prensa, a newspaper published in Buenos Aires: The spectators delight burst out as Zabala ran through the overcrowded streets, so that the police had trouble keeping the masses of people on the pavements. When the race was over and Zabala went walking through the town, people greeted him at every step, they waved to him and expressed their joy at his record performance. Just like it was all happening now, we can relive the glory which that Argentinian journalist felt. 15

4 József GALAMBOS Heinrich BRAUCH Josef BENA HUN GER TCH 2:43:14 2:44:15 2:47:02 A opäť dominoval Galambos. Pre zberateľov bola pripravená prvá maratónska poštová pečiatka. Rarita, ktorá je tu dodnes. Galambos dominated once again. The first Marathon post-mark was produced for collectors a rarity which exists to this day. József GALAMBOS Arthur MOTMILLERS Josef ŠULC Maratón sa v Košiciach bežal už po 10. krát, no víťazných mien bolo iba päť. Prsty v tom mal hlavne Galambos. Vyhral už po štvrtý raz. The Košice Marathon was being run for the 10th time, but there were only five winners names. This was due above all to Galambos, who won for the fourth time now. A opäť dobový obrázok občerstvovacej stanice, kde zababušení organizátori čakajú smädných maratóncov. Another contemporary view of a refreshment station with some organizers, all wrapped up against the cold, waiting for thirsty marathoners. Košičan Ľudovít Majoroš sa na trati objavil ešte i v roku 1997! Ľudovít Majoroš of Košice appeared on the course once again later in 1997! 16 HUN LAT TCH 2:37:53 2:41:38 2:42:43

5 Josef ŠULC TCH 2:41:26 József GALAMBOS HUN 2:42:57 Ilmari KUOKKA FIN 2:47:29 Hymna či sľub pretekárov primäla v strede stojaceho Antonína Zikmunda a divákov zaujať takéto dôstojné postavenie. The anthem, or maybe the competitors oath, has forced Antonín Zikmund (centre) and spectators as well to assume such a dignified pose. Josef Šulc prišiel z Prahy, aby nečakane zvíťazil. Josef Šulc came from Prague to win quite unexpectedly. Košické korzo bolo zaujímavé i pre maratóncov. Na jednej z prechádzok zachytil fotograf budúceho víťaza Arthura Motmillersa (prvý sprava). Spoločnosť mu robil i prvý víťaz Karol Halla (v strede). Promenading on Košice Main Street was an attraction for marathoners too. Future winner Arthur Motmillers (right) is caught strolling here by a photographer, in the company of first ever winner Karol Halla (centre). Arthur MOTMILLERS LAT 2:44:57 Vilmos MAURÉRY HUN 2:47:15 József GALL ROM 2:48:12 17

6 D Do sveta prenikal chýr o vynikajúcich pretekoch i rovnako skvelých divákoch patriacich ku každoročnému koloritu maratónu. V deň, keď sa bežal, prišla do ulíc a na štadión takmer polovica z vtedy 65-tisícového mesta. Berlínsky "Der Weltspiegel des Leichtathlets" napísal: "Košický maratón je oným výnimočným podujatím, ktoré v ročnom období, keď už aj najvášnivejší milovník škvarovej dráhy odloží tretry, dáva ešte raz bežcom dlhých tratí možnosť pretekať sa. A keď príde pozvanie, nikto nechce chýbať. Každý maratónec z Európy tam chce byť. Preto sa na košickom maratóne vždy zíde najkvalitnejšia konkurencia." Ešte pred Zabalom, tu štartoval uznávaný Nemec Hempel z berlínskeho klubu SC Charlottenburg, v tom čase azda najlepší stredoeurópsky bežec. Jeho víťazstvu v roku 1926 sa prizerali páni z nemeckého generálneho konzulátu. Sám predpovedal košickému podujatiu veľkú budúcnosť. Vrátil sa o rok (dobehol tretí) i o tri, aby v studenom počasí víťazstvo zopakoval. Vtedy nemecký odborný časopis "Der Leichtathlet" udelil Košiciam významnú poctu: "Na svete sú len dva veľké maratóny - bostonský a košický." Ten za morom však už stál na viac, než tridsaťročnej tradícii, kým málo známy kút strednej Európy hostil vytrvalcov iba niekoľkokrát. Pritom celé finančné zabezpečenie stálo doslova na amatérskych nohách. A nezriedka bolo i tak, že požiadavky našich popredných bežcov prevýšili nároky cudzincov. Taký Hempel, Lotyš Motmillers, Rakúšan Tuschek alebo Galambos dostali len cestovné tretej triedy a stravu, zatiaľ čo československý šampión Hekš a jeho materský klub Hagibor žiadali cestovné druhej triedy s lôžkom, stravu a tisíc korún na iné výdavky. Pre Košičanov nebol maratóncom len víťaz a niekoľko najlepších, dávali na trati svoje srdce každému. Oduševnene vítali v cieli aj posledného... Keď pribehol sedemdesiatročný "deduško" Gottschling z Nemecka v roku 1936, v tom čase jeden z najstarších európskych maratóncov, už takmer za úplnej tmy, zožal rovnaký potlesk ako prvý, Rakúšan Balaban. Aj takto si košický maratón budoval vo svete nebývalú pozíciu. A tí, čo tu už raz štartovali, nikdy neváhali, keď bola možnosť, prísť znovu. Obľúbený Lotyš Motmillers z Rigy dokonca sedemkrát. Raz aj s majolikovou vázou, ktorú mu doma do kufra pribalila manželka a organizátori ju zaradili medzi ceny, ktoré sa po pretekoch rozdávali. Behával elegantný, celý v bielom a vždy patril medzi najlepších. Jeho osudom sa však stal koncentračný tábor. Tam sa skončila aj životná púť francúzskeho záhradníka Lericheho. Bol posledným víťazom košického maratónu na prahu svetovej tragédie... Úsmevne znie novinová historka z roku 1932: "Ku koncu musíme ešte venovať niekoľko riadkov usporiadaniu, ktoré bolo veľmi dobré, bohužiaľ bol na trati zo začiatku neporiadok, ktorý zapríčiňoval p. György s jeho autom a len vtedy, keď dostal defekt na kolese, išlo všetko svojím chodom. Mali sme už príležitosť písať o tomto pánovi a preto sa čudujeme, že bol opäť na dráhu pustený, keď sa nevie podriadiť pokynom usporiadateľstva." "Inzerát" v denníku "Novosti" 30. októbra 1937: "Košičanky, ktoré by ste chcely venovať svoje srdce Slovákovi - maratonistovi? Je to fešný chlapec a vo štvrtok bežal Slovenský maratón v bielej čiapke. Ostatné možno si dohovoriť s ním samým na adresu: Michal Ňaňko, Spišské Vlachy, Sládkovičova 39." Víťaz posledného predvojnového ročníka (1937) Francúz Désiré Leriche mal pri spoločnej večeri vysoký kurz u lovcov autogramov. Za každý podpis si však nechal za asistencie funkcionárov zaplatiť! Nazbieranú sumu potom odovzdal pre košických chudobných. 18

7 A A rumour spread around the world about this excellent race and the equally wonderful spectators forming a good part of the atmosphere of this marathon every year. On race-day almost half of the then inhabitants of the town came out into the streets or to the stadium. One newspaper story from 1932 raises a smile: To finish with, we must devote just a few lines to the organization, which was very good, apart from some unfortunate confusion on the course at the beginning which was caused by Mr. György and his car, and only when he got a puncture on one wheel did everything start to run as it should. We have already had the opportunity of writing about this gentleman, and so we are rather surprised that he was let onto the course once again, when he is unable to submit himself to the instructions of the organizers. A small ad appeared in the daily Novosti on 30th October 1937: Košice girls, which of you would like to pledge their heart to a Slovak man - a marathon runner? He s a good-looking boy, and on Thursday he ran the Slovakian Marathon in a white cap. You can find out the rest from him personally at the address: Michal Ňaňko, Spišské Vlachy, Sladkovičova 39. The winner of the last pre-war race (1937), the Frenchman Désiré Leriche, figured high on the autograph-hunters lists at the celebration dinner. To their surprise, though, and supported by the officials, he demanded payment for each signature! He later donated the sum collected to the poor of Košice. The Berlin paper Der Weltspiegel des Leichtathlets wrote: The Košice Marathon is that outstanding event which, at the time of year when even the most passionate lover of the cinder track has hung up his spikes, gives long-distance runners one more chance to race. And when the invitation comes, no-one wants to miss out. Every marathon runner in Europe wants to be there. This is why the Košice Marathon is the place where the best-quality competition always comes together. Even before Zabala there appeared here the renowned German Hempel from the Berlin club SC Charlottenburg, at that time probably the best runner in Central Europe. His victory in 1926 was watched by the gentlemen from the German Consulate General. He himself predicted a great future for the Košice event. He returned the next year (and came in third) and again three years later to repeat his cold-weather victory. On that occasion the specialist German magazine Der Leichtathlet paid Košice a considerable compliment: There are only two great marathons in the world Boston and Košice. The overseas one, however, was well established, with more than thirty years of tradition, while this little-known corner of Central Europe had hosted long distance runners only a few times. The financial arrangements as a whole, moreover, were based quite literally on amateur standards. It was not unknown, too, for the demands of our own leading runners to exceed the demands of the foreigners. Competitors like Hempel, the Latvian Motmillers, the Austrian Tuschek and Galambos himself got only third class train fares reimbursed and food, while the Czechoslovak champion Hekš and his parent club Hagibor demanded second class sleeping car travel, food and a thousand crowns for other expenses. For the people of Košice, the marathon did not consist solely of the winner and a few of the best runners their hearts went out to every single runner on the course. Even the last one over the finishing line was welcomed enthusiastically. When Grandad Gottschling from Germany, at that time one of the oldest European marathon runners, crossed the line in 1936 in almost total darkness, he gleaned the same sort of applause as the first home, the Austrian Balaban. It was also in this way that the Košice Marathon built up an unprecedented position in the world. And those who came to run here once never hesitated when an opportunity showed itself to run here again. The popular Latvian Motmillers from Riga even came here seven times, once with a majolica vase which his wife had packed into his suitcase at home, and which the organizers included among the prizes that they handed out after the race. He was always elegant when he ran, all in white, and he was always among the best. He met his fate, however, in a concentration camp. The French gardener Leriche finished his life s run in a camp too. He was the last victor in the Košice Marathon on the threshold of the world tragedy 19

8 György BALABAN Gyula KISS HELBER AUT HUN GER 2:41:00 2:45:10 2:47:27 Posledné pokyny pred štartom z úst Vojtecha Bukovského, ktorého však v kruhu priateľov nik nevolal inak ako Béla báči. Final instructions before the start from the lips of Vojtech Bukovský, whom nobody in his circle of friends would call anything other than Béla báči. Pohľadnice a filatelistické hárky sa stali ďalším vyhľadávaným suvenírom košického maratónu. Désiré LERICHE György BALABAN József GALL 20 FRA AUT ROM Postcards and first-day covers for stamp-collectors became the next sought-after souvenirs of the Košice Marathon. 2:43:41 2:50:44 2:51:07 Dlažbu na Hlavnej ulici dôverne poznal Košičan Jozef Mahely. Prestíž maratónu potvrdzovalo i štátne vyznamenanie, ktoré Francúzovi Désiré Lerichovi udelil minister pre telovýchovu po jeho víťazstve v Košiciach. Jozef Mahely of Košice knew the paving on the Main Street like the back of his hand. The prestige of the Marathon was also confirmed by the state honour awarded to Frenchman Désiré Leriche by the Minister for Physical Education following his victory in Košice.

9 E Európu pohltila vojnová tma, ktorou ťažko tápal aj šport. Slovenský maratón dostal trhlinu širokú sedem rokov. Čiastočne ju zaplátalo päť maratónov usporiadaných počas horthyovskej okupácie Košíc pod maďarskou vlajkou. Bez jediného zahraničného pretekára... E Europe was engulfed in the blackness of war, through which sport had to grope its way with great difficulty. The Slovakian Marathon suffered a cleft seven years wide. To some extent this was patched up with five marathons organized under the Hungarian flag during the Horthy occupation of Košice without a single foreign runner pretekárov / runners Víťaz / Winner : József Kiss (HUN) 2:47: pretekárov / runners Víťaz / Winner : József Gyimesi (HUN) 2:56: pretekárov / runners Víťaz / Winner : József Kiss (HUN) 3:02: pretekárov / runners Víťaz / Winner : Gejza Kiss (HUN) 2:50: pretekárov / runners Víťaz / Winner : Rezsö Kövári (HUN) 2:58:49 21

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11 M Maratónsky svet nezabudol kde Košice ležia a len čo utíchli zbrane, mesto pod Dómom svätej Alžbety sa už horlivo chystalo opäť ho privítať. Pravda, prvý povojnový ročník sa musel z rôznych dôvodov zaobísť bez prívlastku medzinárodný. No o rok, a potom už stále, merali kilometre medzi Košicami a Seňou ozajstné maratónske esá. Počnúc húževnatými Severanmi (boli časy, keď na stupne víťazov iného nepustili), cez sovietske bežiace lokomotívy, klasickú anglickú školu, až po bosonohú etiópsku legendu Abebe Bikilu, písali zlatú kapitolu košickej maratónskej kroniky. Holandský novinár Krämer vyhlásil v roku 1950 pri rozdeľovaní cien: "Len pre tých ma bolí srdce, ktorí tieto preteky nemohli vidieť." Spočiatku panovala v Košiciach doba severská. Naozaj studená. Stalo sa raz, že košický maratón bol odetý celý do biela, bežci sa museli brodiť snehom. Každý rok v októbri, na konci atletickej sezóny, sťahovali sa sem vytrvalci zo Švédska, Fínska, Nórska. A dominovali viac než desaťročie. Denník Göteborg Posten v časoch severskej nadvlády na košickom maratóne napísal: "Prešli sme niekoľko tisíc kilometrov, viac než 20 bostonských maratónov, ale musíme uznať, že žiadny beh nemôže preukázať takú triedu, ako v Košiciach. Sedemdesiat vytrvalcov zabehlo trať pod 3:45 hod. a to je skutočne najvyššia kvalita. Musí nám to odpustiť aj Boston, keď tvrdíme, že v Košiciach je najväčšie zápolenie na svete na maratónsku vzdialenosť." Dievčatá sa najviac obzerali za brčkavým fešákom Göstom Leanderssonom, mladým Švédom. V prvom medzinárodnom ročníku po vojne, práve vtedy, keď celá štreka z Košíc do Sene bola skôr vhodná na dobrú lyžovačku, nestačil ešte na Fína Hietanena, ale o dva roky premenil získané skúsenosti na prvé víťazstvo. Čas mal blízky Zabalovmu rekordu. Nechal si ďalšie dva roky na to, aby ho definitívne poslal do histórie. Vysvitlo, že Gösta má o dokonalú prípravu postarané, lebo v zime i v lete vykonával namáhavú službu horského sprievodcu turistov. Nohy, pľúca i srdce si pritom prišli na svoje. Po bielom maratóne v roku 1946 sa vracali do Prahy českí pretekári spolu so Švédmi. Nastal medzi nimi čulý výmenný obchod. Jeden z nich, volal sa Vichera, si vymenil dres s Jonssonom a ponúkal mu na výmenu i nohy, čo ovšem sympatický Švéd neprijal. 25 T The marathon world, did not forget where Košice is located, and as soon as the guns went silent, the city below St.Elizabeth s Cathedral started preparing enthusiastically to welcome it back once again. It must be said that the first post-war event had to do without the epithet international, for various reasons. But one year later, and every year after that, the kilometres between Košice and Seňa were measured by true marathon aces. These started with the tough Northerners (there were times when the winners podium was accessible to no-one else), continued with the running locomotives from the Soviet Union, via the classical English school, and culminated in the bare-footed Ethiopian legend Abebe Bikila. Each one wrote a golden chapter in the chronicle of the Košice Marathon. The Dutch reporter Krämer announced during the prize-giving at the 1950 Marathon: My heart just goes out to all those who couldn t see this race. To start with, Košice was gripped by a Northern era. A really cold one. Once it happened that the Košice Marathon was completely clothed in white, and the runners had to wade through the snow. In October every year, at the end of the athletics season, long distance runners migrated here from Sweden, Finland and Norway. And they dominated for more than a decade. The newspaper Göteborg Posten wrote during the period of Northern domination at the Košice Marathon: We ve travelled several thousand kilometres and covered more than 20 Boston Marathons, but we have to confess that no other race is able to produce such class as the one in Košice. Seventy long distance runners completed the course in under 3 hours and 45 minutes, and that really is the highest possible quality. Boston will have to forgive us when we maintain that the greatest competition over the marathon distance is to be found in Košice. The one who turned the girls heads most was the young, curly-haired Swedish hunk Gösta Leandersson. In the first international event after the war, on that very occasion when the whole stretch from Košice to Seňa looked more suitable for a good skiing trip, he wasn t yet up to beating the Finn Hietanen, but two years later he put his experience to good use in his first victory. His time was close to Zabala s record. He gave himself another two years before consigning the Argentinian definitively to the history books. It was revealed that Gösta had a perfect preparation programme worked out for himself, because in the winter and in the summer he used to do the demanding job of mountain walkers guide. In the marathon, his legs, lungs and heart came into their own. After the white marathon of 1946, when the Czech runners were returning to Prague together with the Swedes, some lively bartering took place between them. One of them named Vichera exchanged his running kit with Jonsson. He also offered to exchange his legs, but the friendly Swede declined

12 Košičania radi videli na svojej trati Fínov. Veď belasý dres s bielo-modrou vlajočkou evokoval velikánsku legendu olympijských bežeckých tratí Paava Nurmiho. Najmä svetlovlasý Erkki Puolakka v tých časoch udával trend vo svetovom maratónskom hnutí. Ako prvý tu v roku 1952 pokoril hranicu 2 hodiny 30 minút a o dva roky ukrojil ďalšie dve minúty. Vzápätí ho však tromfli Švédi Evert Nyberg i tridsaťdvaročný zámočník z Halmstadu Thomas Nilsson. Čerstvý rekordér košického maratónu, reprezentant troch švédskych koruniek Thomas Nilsson, víťazné tretry v roku 1956 domov nepriniesol. Jeden z našich maratóncov sa v šatni po pretekoch vyzúval a nariekal pritom nad nohou odretou do krvi. Nilsson sa naňho pozrel, zdvihol zo zeme starú a rozbitú tretru, vzal svoju novú, obe zmeral a usmial sa: "To nič, odrenina sa zahojí a potom si obuj tieto moje, nové. Budú ti dobré, premeral som ich!" "Dedina Seňa bola vzorne vyzdobená," písal Šport v roku "Všetci jej občania sú dnes členmi JRD a pripravili sa na privítanie maratóncov skutočne skvele. Nechýbali girlandy na moste, ani tradičná cigánska kapela na obrátke. Jej okolie bolo preplnené divákmi a tak dedina vyzerala ako vymretá. Listár vtipne poznamenal: Teraz je najľahšie doručovanie. Stačí zoskočiť z bicykla na obrátke maratónu a hneď mám adresáta!" Dlho trvala snaha prilákať na štartovú čiaru Sovietov. Trpezlivosť však priniesla ovocie. Čerstvý vietor vniesol do štartového poľa Ivan Filin, aj keď v súboji s Angličanom Kirkupom nedosiahol rekordný čas. Pardubičan Šťastný pribehol v roku 1958 na obrátku v Seni posledný. Za toto umiestnenie dostal pečené prasiatko venované miestnym JRD. Neskôr však musel pre žalúdočné ťažkosti vzdať a bol prevezený do nemocnice. Lekári mu nariadili tri dni prísnej diéty... Družstvo mali Sovieti skvelé. A v ňom aj Sergeja Popova. Rodák z Irkutska sa zapísal nezmazateľným písmom do galérie víťazov v roku za jeho menom sa skvel nový traťový rekord 2:17:45. Bola to pre väčšinu maratóncov na jednej z najťažších európskych tratí nedostižná hranica. Razom sa stal novým favoritom aj pre rímske olympijské hry. Tak sa rodil veľký Popovov rekord v roku 1959: Červené tričko s číslom 17, Leningradčan sa blíži ku Košiciam ako stroj. Vyčerpaný nie je ani trošku, vôbec nespomalil, ešte sa usmieva. "Ak nespadne košický Dóm," hovorí niekto v novinárskom autobuse, "bude to fantastický čas a víťazstvo, aké tu ešte nebolo." Stalo sa. 26 The Košice crowds were always glad to see the Finns on their course. The fact was that, in everyone s mind, every runner in light-blue kit with the little blue and white flag evoked the great legend of the Olympic running races, Paavo Nurmi. In particular the fair-haired Erkki Puolakka set the trend in world marathon movement at that time. In 1952 he was the first man to vanquish the 2 hours and 30 minutes barrier here, and two years later he carved off another two minutes. His achievement was immediately trumped, however, by the Swedes Evert Nyberg and Thomas Nilsson, the 32 year-old mechanic from Halmstadt. Fresh from his record-breaking marathon run in Košice representing the three Swedish crowns, Thomas Nilsson did not go home in 1956 with his victorious spiked shoes. In the changing-room after the race, one of our marathon runners was taking off his shoes and lamenting over the state of his feet, which were rubbed raw and bleeding. Nilsson looked at him, picked up one of the runner s old, wrecked shoes and measured it against one of his own, new pair. Then, smiling, he said: Never mind your feet, they ll heal in no time, and then you can put on my spikes they re new. They ll fit you alright, I ve measured them! The village of Seňa was decorated in exemplary fashion, wrote the newspaper Šport in All the inhabitants are today members of the local co-operative farm, and they prepared themselves brilliantly for welcoming the marathon runners. There was everything from garlands on the bridge to a traditional Gypsy band at the turning point. The area all around there was overflowing with spectators, and the rest of the village looked deserted. The postman jokingly remarked: Now it s easiest to make deliveries. It s enough to jump off my bicycle somewhere around the turning point and I ve got an addressee immediately! It took a lot of time and effort to attract the Soviets to our starting-line, but patience finally bore fruit. When Ivan Filin ran, it was like he brought with him a breath of fresh air, even though in his struggle against the Englishman Kirkup it didn t blow him on to a record time Šťastný of Pardubice reached the turning-point in Seňa in 1958 in last place. For that placing he won a roast piglet presented by the local co-operative farm. On the return leg however he had to give up the race because of stomach problems, and he was taken to hospital. The doctors ordered him to stay on a strict diet for three days. The Soviets had a wonderful team. They had Sergej Popov in it, a native of Irkutsk, who made his own indelible entry in the victors gallery in 1959 with a new course record after his name of 2:17:45. For most marathon runners this became an unattainable target on one of the most difficult courses in Europe. Immediately he became the new favourite for the Olympic Games in Rome too. This is how Popov s great record of 1959 was born: the red vest bearing number 17 of the Leningrad man approaches Košice like a machine. He is not a bit exhausted, he hasn t slowed down at all, and he s still smiling. Unless Košice Cathedral falls down, says somebody in the press bus, this is going to be a fantastic time and a victory we ve never seen the like of before. And that is what happened.

13 Antonín ŠPIROCH TCH 2:47:21 Karel ŽEMLIČKA TCH 2:53:32 Jaroslav ŠTRUPP TCH 2:56:05 Štátny sviatok 28. október bol dňom, keď nad maratónom v Košiciach obrazne i doslovne vyšlo slnko. Po vojnových útrapách sa na štadióne Jednoty (dnes atletický stánok na Watsonovej ulici) zišlo 36 pretekárov. The public holiday on 28th October was the day when the sun rose again metaphorically and literally over the Košice Marathon. The sufferings of wartime were over, and the Jednota Stadium (nowadays the athletics ground on Watsonova Street) welcomed 36 runners. Maratón slobody, ako ho organizátori príznačne pomenovali, našiel svojho víťaza v Antonínovi Špirochovi. The Freedom Marathon, as the organizers appositely named it, found a victor in Antonín Špiroch. 27