New Year's Eve runs in Upper Austria

Gilded fireworks and weird firecrackers!

Dressing up is almost compulsory.

(Bild: Andreas Maringer)

While many New Year's Eve runs in Upper Austria are mainly about fun and dressing up, the running elite compete in Peuerbach. Curiously, however, this time they collect less than a single amateur runner. The "Krone" knows the reasons for this and some other tidbits about the races. 

A small bee, two chimney sweeps and a group of exceptional Kenyan runners meet on the road.

What sounds like the start of a bad joke is just normal madness on the very last day of the year. Numerous New Year's Eve runs are once again on the program throughout Upper Austria - only in Katsdorf did they want to end the year early with an old year's run on 24 November. Thousands of sports enthusiasts and those who want to do something for their conscience at the last minute will end 2024 with a run.

And with some very strange disguises, such as a bee, a pig or even in knight's armor. While there is always an award for this in Wels, for example, the 42nd edition of the New Year's Eve run in Peuerbach traditionally comes to an end after the popular fun run (a record 1200 starters are expected) with the sporting fireworks known as the Run of the Aces.

Ethiopian pro is sent winter clothing
In addition to the national star runner Andi Vojta, the Kenyan top athlete Edinah Jebitok and the Hungarian Viktoria Wagner-Gyürkes had to cancel their participation yesterday due to illness. However, after numerous phone calls and a few sleepless nights, OC boss Carsten Eich was able to put together a very strong field of starters as always.

The elite run in Peuerbach

(Bild: Andreas Maringer)

Last year's champ Florian Bremm is the favorite alongside Kenyan ace Reynold Cheruiyou, while Tobi Rattinger from Styria also wants to play a good role in his Peuerbach debut. The Ethiopian Yibeltal Gashahun will be running in Europe for the first time.

Gold value tripled
However, he did not know that there was a temperature difference of almost 20 degrees compared to his home country. Which is why the management had sent him a package of winter clothing and running shoes at short notice. But that's by no means all there is to see before New Year's Eve! In Peuerbach, the "golden runner" will once again be drawn from all the starters in the hobby competitions this year and will receive a golden pendant as a gift.

And thus earns more than the top runners from Kenya. "Four years ago the pendant was worth 1000 euros, since the rise of gold 3000. That's more than the premium of the top runners," smiles Eich ahead of the end of the year in Upper Austria.