As of the latest data shared by the Lebanese Health Ministry, 10,452 people have been vaccinated as part of the Vaccine Marathon.
In a statement, the Health Ministry said the number, which is the same as the area of Lebanon, was reached at 6:30 PM on Saturday.
This was hours after the launching of the Marathon, which aimed at vaccinating as many people above the age of 30 as possible across the country with the AstraZeneca coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine.
Caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hasan marked the start of the event himself by receiving an AstraZeneca shot on Saturday morning.
The Marathon saw a significant turnout early on, with crowds of people photographed waiting outside authorized vaccination centers in various Lebanese areas, waiting for their turn to receive a vaccine jab.
To encourage more people to participate in the Vaccine Marathon, individuals who haven’t registered on the IMPACT platform to be vaccinated against COVID-19, and who don’t have an appointment for vaccination, were also allowed to show up at vaccination centers and receive a shot.
The Marathon also saw significant activity on Twitter, where #AstraZeneca topped the list of top-trending hashtags in Lebanon in the afternoon.
The encouraging numbers of participants recorded across the provinces prompted the Lebanese Red Cross to announce the extension of the Marathon until 8 PM of the same day.
The province with the highest turnout will be declared the winner of the Vaccine Marathon.
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