Seaweed pods will replace the disposable cups of the London Marathon

Once the athletes have crossed the finish line and the excitement of a marathon has abated, there is more than a waste of time. Bottles and cups litter the course, raising questions about the environmental impact of bottles and cups used for hydration and left out.

This year, the London Marathon is implementing measures to reduce this waste, something they hope to develop in the future. They aim to zero waste by 2020, which will bring about many changes. And that will start with runners eating their water bottles.

Yes, eating their bottles of water. But this is not as disgusting as it may seem: runners will receive seaweed capsules filled with Lucozade Sport, an electrolyte drink, instead of bottles. The Ooho! 30 ml capsules, produced by the young technology company Skipping Rocks Lab in London, can be stitched to release the liquid. Then, the capsules themselves can be eaten or spat out because they are biodegradable.

Although this is not the first time that runners receive seaweed capsules instead of single-use cups, it will be the biggest test of the Ooho! capsules, according to race officials.

The Lucozade Sport-filled algae capsules will be provided at kilometer 23. There will be over 30,000 Ooho seaweed capsules that are edible, biodegradable in four to six weeks if you are a little suspicious, according to Lucozade Sport. In addition, three Lucozade Sport stations will use compostable cups.

How do Ooho capsules work? You insert the pod that will be given to you by volunteers with gloves in the mouth against the cheek and bite. It looks like eating a cherry tomato, says an article from Lucozade Sport's website.

The marathon officials also announced other measures to reduce waste, such as reducing the number of service stations to 19 out of 19, which will reduce the number of plastic bottles by 215,000 on the course.

[PbadezàtraversunesériedeséancesHIITpourrenforcerlarésistanceàlacourseetéviterlesblessuresavecle[BlastthroughaseriesofHIITsessionstoboostrunningstrengthandpreventinjurywiththe[PbadezàtraversunesériedeséancesHIITpourrenforcerlarésistanceàlacourseetéviterlesblessuresavecle[BlastthroughaseriesofHIITsessionstoboostrunningstrengthandpreventinjurywiththeIronStrength Workout.]

In addition, the marathon is committed to ensuring zero waste in landfills by 2020 and has implemented other sustainable measures, such as the provision race instructions and exclusively digital recording equipment, the establishment of a trial to track the amount of water used by runners during the race, and the creation of drop zones for riders who abandon their bottles to facilitate cleaning and ensure the recycling of all bottles.

Other races, such as the Xiamen Marathon and the Harrow Half Marathon, have already become plastic-free.

"We are pbadionate about the concept of eliminating, reducing, reusing and recycling, and we are fully committed to reducing our impact on the environment. We believe we are organizing the best mbad participation events in the world, and we want to match that by leading the world in sustainability of mbad participation events, "said event director Hugh Brasher.