Legion Announces The Suspension Of Ultra-Distance Race In Almeria

Legion Announces The Suspension Of Ultra-Distance Race In Almeria.

The Legion announces the suspension of the La Desértica 2021 ultra-distance race in Spain’s Almeria.

Sadly, due to the ongoing pandemic the decision has had to be made to put health first. The Legion’s Tercio Don Juan de Austria officially announced that the fourth edition of the ultra-distance race will be suspended.

The organisation has made the decision to put the health of the event participants first and have sadly made the hard decision to postpone the event until 2022. It is felt that at this point in time vaccinations will have been given to everyone in Spain and the sponsors will be in a better economic position.

Colonel Pablo Gómez-Lera, head of the III Tercio and president of the club which was founded in order to promote the race, has commented on the cancellation and said: “Although the evolution of the pandemic shows positive indicators as a result of the vaccination campaign, the characteristics of our Desértica mean that we must be extremely prudent.”

He went on to talk about the aims of the event and highlighted that: “We have considered that modifying the format of the event, reducing the number of participants until we have an acceptable health safety margin, would take us away from the purpose of La Desértica, which is none other than to make this event an annual landmark of massive coexistence between Almería and the Legion, with the stupendous and beautiful setting that the Almerian desert offers as a backdrop.”

He also wanted to thank sponsors and collaborators for their support. He commented that: “From the Sports Club, we want to reiterate our clear message of support and encouragement to all Spaniards who have been affected directly or indirectly by this dramatic pandemic. We would also like to thank our sponsors and collaborators for their continued support and interest.”