Francisco Castellano stressed that with the recovery of this type of races “not only physical activity and sports on the Island but also the economy are activated.”
The Cochinero Challenge obstacle race celebrates its fifth edition this weekend with a change of route and more than 40 obstacles that are distributed between the historic center of Ingenio, the La Pasadilla area and some of the royal roads, giving it a more vision technique both on the descent and making the climb harder and providing an attractive landscape. This year the race offers three modalities, one of 12 kilometers, another of 8 and a children's one, which will be on Friday afternoon, with a more fun circuit so that families can participate and that takes place between the Plaza de La Candelaria and historic helmet.
The Sports Councilor of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria, Francisco Castellano, accompanied by the mayor of Villa de Ingenio, Ana Hernández, the Sports Councilor, Mario Ramírez and the organizer of the test, Salvador Gil, presented this fifth edition of the test recreational-sports that puts the municipality among the offer of this type of races in Gran Canaria and the Canary Islands.
Francisco Castellano, who congratulated the City Council for recovering this test, assured that “this year was a magnificent opportunity to reinvent this test, and they have done so.” Furthermore, he stressed that with the recovery of this type of races “not only physical activity and sports on the Island but also the economy are activated, making a great effort once the confinement was lifted and we have been adapting to all and each of the different health phases.”
Ana Hernández stated that the Cochinero Challenge “winks at our identity as a people, because it is known that the people who live in Ingenio are popularly known as 'Cochineros' or 'Cochineras', because many of our ancestors sold pigs all over the island. And far from being offended, we have turned it into a strength.” She also highlighted that, in addition to testing resistance and the spirit of improvement, "what is enjoyed collectively is the atmosphere that surrounds this test and that transforms our municipality into a great circuit that combines sport and fun."
Attractive tour
For his part, Mario Ramírez was pleased to recover the Cochinero Challenge "because we are once again celebrating popular events that have always been held in this municipality, committed to sport and whose main objective is to bring sport closer to as many people as possible."
Finally, Salvador Gil offered details of the race and assured that “we have been working for more than a year and a half and we have had to approach the test differently due to the pandemic.”
The organizer stated that real roads have been included “that we had not used before and that gives value to this edition. It is a more attractive route, which with the experience of the years does not lead to getting to know the municipality better and making the participating people enjoy it," and added that the Cochinero Challenge is an opportunity for all those people who want to get started in the world of obstacle races and at the same time learn about the potential of the municipality of Ingenio.”