Manuela Schär wins $7,000 for herself and chosen charity in Abbott World Marathon Majors Accumulator at 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon
Manuela Schär (SUI) was the most successful athlete in the first ever Abbott World Marathon Majors (AWMM) Accumulator at the 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon.
The AWMM Accumulator was a sprint competition within both wheelchairs races that enabled athletes to win additional prize money which Abbott has pledged to match fund with a donation to a UK charity of the athlete’s choice.
There were four sprints in total during the race which was 19.7 laps. Sprint one was the start of lap five (15 laps to go), sprint two at the start of lap nine (11 laps to go), sprint three at the start of Lap 13 (seven laps to go) and sprint four at the start of Lap 18 (two laps to go). The sprints were from the finish gantry to the start gantry (approximately 505 metres).
The prize money was as follows:
- Sprint 1: $4,000
- Sprint 2: $3,000
- Sprint 3: $2,000
- Sprint 4: $1,000
Two-time Virgin Money London Marathon champion Schär finished a surprise runner-up in the elite women’s wheelchair race behind Nikita den Boer (NED). But she did have reason to celebrate as she won the highest prize pot in the AWMM Accumulator of all athletes in both men’s and women’s wheelchair races.
Schär won sprints one and two in the women’s wheelchair race to earn $7,000 and chose the Weir Archer Academy as the beneficiaries of Abbott’s pledge to match-fund the prize-winning total.
Eventual 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon champion den Boer won $3,000 by being the fastest on sprints three and four and chose Wheelpower to receive the Abbott donation.
In the men’s race, 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon champion Brent Lakatos of Canada also won the most prize money in the AWMM accumulator.
Lakatos won sprints two, three and four to earn $6,000 in total. His chosen charity to receive the same figure thanks to a donation from Abbott was also Wheelpower.
Marcel Hug, who finished third overall in the men’s race, won $4,000 by winning sprint one. His chosen charity was the Weir Archer Academy.
The Weir Archer Academy was created by eight-time London Marathon champion David Weir, who was runner-up in the 2020 race, and his coach Jenny Archer. Their ambition is to pass on their knowledge, experience, and enjoyment of the benefits of sport to the next generation of disabled people.
Wheelpower is the national charity for wheelchair sport based at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, the birthplace of the Paralympics. It provides opportunities for disabled people to play sport and lead healthy active lives.