Mandeville, Manchester — The Roman Catholic-operated Mount St Joseph Preparatory School, which initiated a Kiddies Marathon for Child Month in 2014, will next month host the third staging of the event.

The event will be held on Sunday, May 8. It will start and end on the school grounds at Manchester Road.

The Kiddies Marathon idea was conceived by Mount St Joseph principal, Jem Stanley, who said the initiative is not only to encourage a healthy lifestyle, but long distance running from early.

Students from preparatory and primary schools compete in the categories of 1.5km, 2.5km and 5km races.

For Stanley, the preparation and participation is also important for character building.

At a press launch at the Mandeville Hotel on Thursday, she said that 25 schools are expected to take part.

In addition to the participating schools in Manchester, this year, schools and groups from St Elizabeth and Clarendon will also be competing.

Stanley told the Jamaica Observer Central that it is because of the support of additional sponsorship that Mount St Joseph was able to expand the reach of the marathon.

As such, the event is now called the Central Kiddies Marathon.

“We just want to press on and make this thing more than a national event. No limits, no boundaries. We keep on growing,” Stanley told the audience.

Top Loaf Bake Shops, she said, came on board as the title sponsor and Wisynco, First Global Bank and Fence Masters are also making the event possible.

Stanley said that she is expecting that other sponsors will show support before the event is held next month.

General Manager of Top Loaf Bake Shops, Ryan Chen, said that an event such as the Central Kiddies Marathon can unearth major potential talents in that area of athletics.

“Marathons are not generally (or) traditionally as popular as sprinting in Jamaica… But we can have great marathon runners as well,” he said.

The marathon competitors must be 7-12 years old.

Apart from the awards in the individual categories, schools with the highest number of students participating will also be recognised.

“It is not just a Mount St Joseph thing, it is a central Jamaica thing. I want us to own it,” said Stanley.

She said that adults are encouraged to participate, especially mothers, since the day of the event is also being celebrated as Mother’s Day.