Barcelona Marathon
Plaça d'Espanya, the start and finish area, in 2012
DateMarch
LocationBarcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Event typeRoad
DistanceMarathon
Primary sponsorZurich
Established1978 (46 years ago) (1978)
Course recordsMen: 2:05:53 (2022)
Ethiopia Yihunilign Adane[1]
Women: 2:23:11 (2022)
Ethiopia Meseret Gebre[1]
Official siteBarcelona Marathon
Participants5,410 finishers (2022)[2]
9,145 finishers (2021)
13,437 (2019)
A young spectator in 2007
Runner carrying a giant prop, 2012

The Zurich Barcelona Marathon (Catalan: Marató Barcelona), formerly the Marathon Catalunya and later the Marató de Catalunya, is an annual marathon race over the classic distance of 42.195 km (26.219 mi) usually held in March in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, and first held in 1978 in Palafrugell, Catalonia. The marathon is categorized as a Silver Label Road Race by World Athletics.[3]

History

The marathon was first started by a Catalan chemist, Ramón Oliu, after he had run the New York City Marathon in 1976.[4][5] Because there were no marathons in Catalonia at the time, Oliu decided to organize the first one in 1978.[4][6] He held it in Palafrugell because he was unable to obtain a permit to hold it in Barcelona, and he named the race "Catalunya 78".[4][7] This race also has the distinction of being the first popular marathon in Spain, as the Madrid Marathon was held later that same year.[5][8]

The marathon was held in Palafrugell again in 1979 due to a lack of a Barcelonian permit, but was subsequently moved in Barcelona in 1980.[4] The marathon eventually became known as the "Marathon Catalunya".[9]

After a number of intermediate name changes, the name was eventually changed to "Zurich Marató de Barcelona" in 2012.[10]

In 2010, Kenyan Jackson Kipkoech Kotut won the race in a time of 2:07:30 hours. This was a course record and also the fastest marathon ever run in Spain.[11] Over 10,000 participants took part in the event that year.

The 2020 edition of the race was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, with the event being rescheduled for 25 October 2020.[12] Runners were also given the option of deferring their entry to the 2021 event, set to be held on 14 March 2021 instead of the revised 2020 date.

On 14 August 2020 the event was again cancelled, and is now set to return on 7 November 2021.[13] Entrants are given the option of free entry in the new date with the possibility of running the half-marathon event in October for free also, or taking a refund, though as of 21 August 2020 many entrants report not having received any information about how to select from the alternative options. In March 2023, Àlex Roca Campillo, an athlete with cerebral palsy completed the Barcelona Marathon in five hours, 50 minutes and 21 seconds, becoming the first person with cerebral palsy to do so.[14]

Course

The route starts and finishes at Plaça d'Espanya, at the foot of Montjuïc, in the Sants-Montjuïc district. It passes Camp Nou, back to Plaça d'Espanya, past Sagrada Família, near the beach in northeast, around the old city, back to the shore and back to Plaça d'Espanya. It has many straight parts separated by sharp street corners. The route feels flat, but looks more hilly on a height profile diagram. It has some long slow inclines, notably around 25–27 km and 39–41 km.

The marathon course was changed for the 2019 edition of the race, resulting in both course records being broken that year.[15][a]

Winners

Key:    Course record (in bold)

Ed. Year Men's winner Time[b] Women's winner Time[b] Rf.
1 1978  David Patterson (USA) 2:23:15  Matilde Gómez (ESP) 3:55:33 [16][5]
2 1979  David Patterson (USA) 2:19:37  Matilde Gómez (ESP) 3:18:48 [16][5]
3 1980  Don Faircloth (GBR) 2:19:42  Joaquima Casas (ESP) 3:09:53 [16][17]
4 1981  Martin Knapp (GBR) 2:18:56  Icíar Martínez (ESP) 2:47:12 [17][18]
5 1982  Michael Pinocci (USA) 2:14:30  Rita Borralho (POR) 2:46:58 [16][5]
6 1983  Allan Zachariasen (DEN) 2:11:05  Anna Domoratskaya (URS) 2:48:21
7 1984  Werner Meier (SUI) 2:14:50  Margaret Lockley (GBR) 2:41:42
8 1985  Rafael García (ESP) 2:18:16  Joaquima Casas (ESP) 2:48:01
9 1986  Frederik Vandervennet (BEL) 2:15:45  Deborah Heath (GBR) 2:48:22
10 1987  Pär Wallin (SWE) 2:13:59  Joaquima Casas (ESP) 2:43:28
11 1988  Fernando Díaz (ESP) 2:19:58  Deborah Heath (GBR) 2:45:35
12 1989  Doug Kurtis (USA) 2:16:37  Martine van de Gehuchte (BEL) 2:37:41
13 1990  Allan Zachariasen (DEN) 2:16:30  Elisenda Pucurull (ESP) 2:43:12
14 1991  Kazuya Nishimoto (JPN) 2:16:32  Satoe Minegishi (JPN) 2:38:37
15 1992  John Burra (TAN) 2:12:46  Maria Starovska (TCH) 2:34:07
16 1993  Volmir Herbstrith (BRA) 2:13:25  Emma Scaunich (ITA) 2:36:16
17 1994  Benito Ojeda (ESP) 2:15:14  Marina Ivanova (RUS) 2:40:30
18 1995  Igor Tyazhkorob (RUS) 2:21:12  Núria Pastor (ESP) 2:44:19
19 1996  Benito Ojeda (ESP) 2:16:57  Giselle Camilleri (MLT) 2:48:17
20 1997  Abdeslam Serrokh (MAR) 2:12:53  Ana Isabel Alonso (ESP) 2:30:06
21 1998  Abdeslam Serrokh (MAR) 2:09:48  Ana Isabel Alonso (ESP) 2:30:05
22 1999  Daniel Komen (KEN) 2:16:24  Eva Sanz (ESP) 2:37:56
23 2000  William Musyoki (KEN) 2:12:18  Griselda González (ESP) 2:31:12
24 2001  Benedict Ako (TAN) 2:13:53  Leone Justino da Silva (BRA) 2:40:32
25 2002  Benjamin Rotich (KEN) 2:12:07  Halyna Zhulieva (UKR) 2:40:33
26 2003  Alberto Juzdado (ESP) 2:10:53  Kenza Wahbi (MAR) 2:38:36
27 2004  Driss Lakhaouja (MAR) 2:15:59  Karin Schön (SWE) 2:42:54
— 2005 not held due to issues with organizers
28 2006  Joseph Nguran (KEN) 2:12:36  Haile Kebebush (ETH) 2:41:23
29 2007  Johnstone Chebii (KEN) 2:12:04  Kristijna Loonen (NED) 2:42:03
30 2008  Hosea Kosgei (KEN) 2:14:42  Mihret Tadesse (ETH) 2:42:17
31 2009  Johnstone Chebii (KEN) 2:14:01  Tadelesh Debre (ETH) 2:39:43
32 2010  Jackson Kotut (KEN) 2:07:30  Debola Wudnesh (ETH) 2:31:50
33 2011  Levi Matebo (KEN) 2:07:31  Josephine Ambjörnsson (SWE) 2:45:31
34 2012  Julius Chepkwony (KEN) 2:11:14  Emily Samoei (KEN) 2:26:53
35 2013  Gezahegne Abera (ETH) 2:10:17  Lemelem Berha (ETH) 2:34:39
36 2014  Getachew Abayu (ETH) 2:10:45  Frasiah Nyambura (KEN) 2:32:26
37 2015  Philip Kangogo (KEN) 2:08:16  Aynalem Kassahun (ETH) 2:28:20
38 2016  Dino Sefir (ETH) 2:09:31  Valerie Aiyabei (KEN) 2:25:26
39 2017  Jonah Chesum (KEN) 2:08:56  Helen Bekele (ETH) 2:25:04
40 2018  Anthony Maritim (KEN) 2:08:08  Ruth Chebitok (KEN) 2:25:46
41 2019  Alemu Bekele (BHR) 2:06:04  Kuftu Tahir (ETH) 2:24:44 [19][15]
— 2020 cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic [13]
42 2021  Samuel Kosgei (KEN) 2:06:03  Tadu Teshome (ETH) 2:23:53
43 2022  Yihunilign Adane (ETH) 2:05:53  Meseret Gebre (ETH) 2:23:11 [20][21]
44 2023  Marius Kimutai (BHR) 2:05:06  Zeineba Yimer (ETH) 2:19:44 [22]

Multiple wins

By country

Country Total Men's Women's
 Kenya 18 14 4
 Spain 17 5 12
 Ethiopia 15 4 11
 United Kingdom 5 2 3
 United States 4 4 0
 Morocco 4 3 1
 Russia 2 1 1
 Sweden 3 1 2
 Denmark 2 2 0
 Belgium 2 1 1
 Japan 2 1 1
 Tanzania 2 2 0
 Brazil 2 1 1
 Portugal 1 0 1
 Switzerland 1 1 0
 Czech Republic 1 0 1
 Italy 1 0 1
 Malta 1 0 1
 Ukraine 1 0 1
 Netherlands 1 0 1
 Bahrain 2 2 0

See also

Notes

  1. ^ It was reported that the changes were made "in order to reduce the total elevation changes by more than 10%".[15]
  2. ^ a b h:m:s

References

  1. ^ a b "Gudeta and Kigen prevail in Prague | REPORTS | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Archived from the original on 11 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  2. ^
  3. ^ "Events Calendar | World Athletics".
  4. ^ a b c d "Marató de Barcelona - Biblioteca Virtual". Archived from the original on 2020-10-21.
  5. ^ a b c d e "42 EDITIONS OF THE MARATHON OF BARCELONA - Blog Zurich Marató de Barcelona". www.zurichmaratobarcelona.es. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  6. ^ "REVISTA MARATHON: EN RECORD DEL DOCTOR PERE PUJOL - Atletisme.cat". www.atletisme.cat. Archived from the original on 19 July 2013. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  7. ^ "Així Va Ser la Primera Marató de Catalunya (1978)". 22 March 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-11-23.
  8. ^ "Barcelona's Marathon | Blog Grand Hotel Central". Archived from the original on 2020-08-08.
  9. ^ "Las pioneras del maratón en España - Running". running.es. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  10. ^ Michiels, Frieda and Paul; Minshull, Phil; Gasparovic, Juraj & Loonstra, Klaas (11 March 2009). "Barcelona Marathon". ARRS. Retrieved 2010-01-20.
  11. ^ Michiels, Paul & Post, Marty (2011-03-27). All-Comers Records- Marathon. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved on 2011-05-02.
  12. ^ "Barcelona Marathon Postponed Due to Coronavirus - The New York Times". www.nytimes.com. Archived from the original on 2020-03-07.
  13. ^ a b "Zurich Marató | News". www.zurichmaratobarcelona.es. Archived from the original on 2020-09-20.
  14. ^ DancelCorrespondent, Raul (2023-03-22). "'A superhuman feat of endurance': Man with cerebral palsy finishes Barcelona marathon". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  15. ^ a b c "Alemu Bekele and Kuftu Tahir make history in Barcelona". Archived from the original on 2020-10-20.
  16. ^ a b c d "Barcelona Marathon". Archived from the original on 2020-10-21.
  17. ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). ajuntament.barcelona.cat. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2022.((cite web)): CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. ^ https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/-/14445368
  19. ^ "Zurich Marató | la carrera - Resultados 2019". zurichmaratobarcelona.es. Archived from the original on 13 April 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  20. ^ "World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Archived from the original on 10 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  21. ^ "Adane y Dekebo, nuevos récords en el maratón de Barcelona". www.runnersworld.com. Archived from the original on 11 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  22. ^ "Zurich Marathon Barcelona 2023 Results". Watch Athletics. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
List of winners

External links

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