Katsuyama Kyoryu Cross Country Race Cancelled Due to Bears

On June 4 the organizers of the 15th Katsuyama Kyoryu Cross Country Race scheduled for June 9 in Katsuyama, Fukui announced that the race has been cancelled due to bear sightings at its main venue, the Katsuyama Kyoryu no Mori park. Organizers said that participants' safety was their number one priority. The cancellation is the second in the event's history. The 6th running was also cancelled due to bear sightings.

Katsuyama experienced a string of four separate bear sightings on June 2. One of those was in Katsuyama Kyoryu no Mori park, where a man sighted a single bear at around 7:30 a.m. City officials closed some sections of the park as a result and set up warning signs to alert people to the danger.

The Katsuyama Kyoryu Cross Country Race is a popular event named after a variety of dinosaur whose fossils have been excavated in the region. The race covers a rugged course through the area's forests and countryside. More than 1000 people take part every year. Organizers had planned this year to celebrate the event's first edition of the new Reiwa era. The race's main venue, Katsuyama Kyoryu no Mori park, is located nearby the Fukui Prefecture Dinosaur Museum, which welcomes over 900,000 visitors annually.

source article:
https://www.fukuishimbun.co.jp/articles/-/867891
translated by Brett Larner