Authority blow given on Sunday morning by the conejero athlete José Carlos Hernández. Not only was he the best Spaniard in the Barcelona Marathon, but he also lowered his personal best by two minutes and is placed with the second best Spanish mark for the London 2012 Olympic Games. A record that allows him to dream of being at the Olympic event, demonstrating that he is one of the Spanish athletes who is in the best shape at the moment of the season.
The Barcelona Marathon was marked in red on the sports calendar of José Carlos Hernández. The athlete of the Tenerife CajaCanarias club had made a specific preparation to arrive in the best physical condition to this event and fight to get below two hours and thirteen minutes. A time that would allow him to place himself in the first positions of the national ranking and present his credentials to be chosen within the Spanish team that will travel this coming summer to London.
The thirty-fourth edition of the Barcelona Marathon had a record number of participants, with more than 19,000 athletes taking the start. José Carlos Hernández fulfilled the predictions and rubbed shoulders with the great favorites of the Catalan event. A race dominated by Kenyan marathon runners and in which the Lanzarote athlete always remained among the top classified.
José Carlos Hernández crossed the finish line in eighth position and made a time of 2 hours, 11 minutes and 57 seconds to complete the 42.2 kilometers of the course. The winner of the race was the Kenyan Julius Chepkowony (2:11:14), who was only 43 seconds ahead of José Carlos Hernández. The Lanzarote athlete was not only the best Spaniard in the race, but was also the first European to cross the finish line in Barcelona.
The record achieved by José Carlos Hernández allows him to beat his personal best by almost two minutes, achieved in the Berlin Marathon in 2010 with a time of 2:13:46. This Sunday's time becomes a new record for the Canary Islands in the distance, with the previous record being held by José Carlos Hernández himself.
José Carlos Hernández has taken a giant step to be in the London Olympic Games next summer. Currently, Carles Castillejo heads the list of the Royal Spanish Athletics Federation, with a time of 2:10:09, a mark achieved in December in Castellón. José Carlos Hernández with 02:11:57 is currently in second place in the national ranking, ahead of athletes of the stature of Chema Martínez, Ricardo Serrano, Pedro Nimo or Ayad Lamdassem. The veteran Chema Martínez took part in the Barcelona Marathon and was forced to retire in kilometer 28.
Aroa Merino, fourth classified in her category
The Barcelona Marathon also included the participation of the Lanzarote athlete Aroa Merino. The Lanzarote native was the fourth best classified in her age group and made a time of 2 hours, 55 minutes and 3 seconds. A great mark registered by Aroa Merino and who once again proved to be one of the great dominators of the long distance.
