(Seychelles News Agency) - The Seychelles Nature Trail 2023 event will take place on Saturday, May 13, and the final preparations are underway as the island nation welcomes around 300 athletes for the 22km challenge. 

The Department of Tourism is organising the event along with partners like Ilop Sport, a Reunion-based company that specialises in outdoor sports, with the goal of providing visitors with yet another activity to enjoy while visiting the country.  

The event takes the athletes along the main roads as well as nature trails on the main island of Mahe. 

To ensure there are no dangers to the participants, measures are being put in place to ensure the event takes place without a hitch.

This will include partial closure of certain roads and event some of the trails, to ensure minimum obstruction for the athletes. 

“We will be deploying police officers at various areas, where they will be tasked with encouraging members of the public to stay out of certain areas, such as the Anse Major trail,” said assistant superintendent Marcus Jean of the Seychelles Police. 

Participants will run the trails of Anse Major, Mare Aux Cochons and Casse Dents. 

The event is expected to start in the early hours of May 13, next to the Contance Ephelia Resort. 

The challenge will end in the western Mahe district of Grand Anse, where a prize giving ceremony will take place.  

With Seychelles being very popular for its pristine natural environment, such a large number of people using the trails all at once, is a cause of concern for many. 

However, the organisers of the event, Tourism Seychelles - the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism - has pledged that it will ensure all the trails remain the same as they were before the event takes place. 

“While it is true that this is an international event, where we want to showcase other areas that tourists can enjoy in Seychelles, one of the things we put at forefront of everything was the protection of our ecosystem,” said Bernadette Willemin, the director general for marketing at the Department of Tourism. 

This is the first time such an event takes place in Seychelles, after it was re-scheduled from its original date back in 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.