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Helsinki Marathon Leaves Streets Strewn with Litter
🇫🇮 Finland /Culture & Society

Helsinki Marathon Leaves Streets Strewn with Litter

From Helsingin Sanomat · () Finnish

Translated from Finnish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • A runner participating in the Björn Borg Helsinki Marathon left behind a significant amount of trash, including gel packets and cups.
  • Despite the event's organizer stating that waste management was outsourced, organizers are responsible for the cleanup.
  • The incident highlights a recurring issue of littering after large public events in Helsinki.

Helsinki's streets were littered with trash following the Björn Borg Helsinki Marathon, which took place on Saturday with various race distances. On Sunday, participants' discarded items, such as drinking cups and nutrient gel packets, were still visible along the city's routes. Large signs indicating the race course were also left behind, with one sign remaining on a bike path in Ruoholahti throughout Sunday afternoon.

As the organizer, we are of course responsible for the trash and its cleanup afterward.

— Tapani VirtanenHelsinki Marathon Oy organizer Tapani Virtanen acknowledging responsibility for post-event cleanup.

The marathon, which includes a full marathon, half marathon, and a 10-kilometer race, has been held annually since 2018 and has seen a near tenfold increase in participants. This year, approximately 10,000 runners took part. According to event organizer Tapani Virtanen of Helsinki Marathon Oy, waste management was handled by an external contractor, though the organizer retains ultimate responsibility for the cleanup.

Virtanen acknowledged that while the "worst" litter was cleared immediately after the event on Saturday, some "individual" pieces may have been left behind. He stated that there were sufficient trash bins along the route, with one located after each of the ten aid stations. However, photos from Ruoholahti showed gel packets outside the designated aid points, scattered on the ground and around overflowing city bins, suggesting runners attempted to discard trash as they ran.

Yes, other city residents also throw trash on the street. We should investigate what the situation is there.

— Tapani VirtanenTapani Virtanen suggesting that littering is not solely attributable to marathon participants.

Virtanen was hesitant to attribute all the litter solely to the marathon, suggesting that other city residents also contribute to street littering. He promised that all remaining trash and signs would be collected by Sunday or Monday at the latest, with the entire marathon route being inspected. The recent storm that hit Helsinki on Saturday night and Sunday morning could have further spread any litter into the sea.

The worst trash was cleaned up right after the event on Saturday, but individual pieces may have remained on the ground.

— Tapani VirtanenTapani Virtanen commenting on the extent of cleanup efforts.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Helsingin Sanomat in Finnish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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