A last-minute logistical scramble has ensured thousands of runners at a major Queensland marathon festival will receive their medals.
A record number of more than 16,000 people will descend on the Sunshine Coast as the region hosts the event on Sunday.
But participants received an email late on Wednesday informing them they might not get a medal for crossing the line.
A medal from last year’s Sunshine Coast Marathon Festival. (ABC Sunshine Coast: Jessica Ross)
Event director Jason Crowther told the ABC a container full of T-shirts and medals arrived at the Port of Brisbane on Tuesday, but was stranded on the dock.
Mr Crowther said the merchandise was ordered months ago and was due to arrive on July 3, with the shipping company blaming point-of-origin delays and a typhoon for the late arrival.
“This is something you just don’t want to happen,” he said.
“To not get a finisher medal is not acceptable from our point of view.
“We don’t take this lightly.”
The Sunshine Coast Marathon Festival is a popular event, which attracts runners from around the country. (Supplied: Sunshine Coast Marathon)
Port mobilises to solve crisis
When the Port of Brisbane was made aware of the issue following a media enquiry, officials rolled up their sleeves.
Executive general manager Brendan Connell said he was “really pleased” to help.
“We’ve been able to identify the container, get it moving and get it onto the Sunshine Coast so that all those hard-running marathoners, very worthy recipients, can get their medals on the weekend,” he said.
“As soon as we found out … we wanted to do everything we could to help.
“We made a couple of phone calls, some senior people made some decisions, and in fact they disrupted their own days to ensure that we could identify this container.
“A few other things were put on the backburner to make that happen, but ultimately, everybody was able to come together and get to a really good outcome.”
The event provides a much-needed tourism boost for the region over the winter months. (Supplied: Sunshine Coast Marathon)
Mr Crowther said he was grateful to port officials for helping get the medals and merchandise released.
“They’ve moved heaven and earth to make it happen so a big thank you to them,” he said.
“I’ve had a week of sleepless nights; it was something that was meant to arrive a long time ago.“
For anyone considering calling the port to get their parcel delivered faster, Mr Connell has bad news.
“It is a really complex series of events that moves freight around the world,” he said.
“This isn’t a scenario we could repeat every day, it isn’t something that we can ordinarily influence.
“But certainly when there’s a massive event like this going on … we wanted to make sure we could come together and do what we could to find those medals and get them on their way.”
Last year, tourism officials estimated the Sunshine Coast race weekend generated about $10.5 million for the local economy.
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