Over 60,000 people to cross from Asia to Europe in Istanbul Marathon

ISTANBUL

Over 60,000 participants will run from the Asian to the European side in the 44th Istanbul Marathon, which will take place on Nov. 6.

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu; Mustafa Yasin Taş, the vice president of the Turkish Athletics Federation; Renay Onur, the general manager of Spor İstanbul; and Ayşegül Adaca, the general manager of Aktif Investment Bank, the sponsor of the event, attended the introductory meeting of the marathon.

Starting in the Altunizade district on the Asian side, the 8-kilometer stage of the race will be completed in Dolmabahçe on the European side.

The 15-kilometer stage will finish in the Yenikapı neighborhood in the Fatih district, while the 42-kilometer marathon will end in historic Sultanahmet Square in Fatih.

In the race, which is the only intercontinental marathon in the world, around 30,000 athletes will take to the track in the 15-kilometer and 42-kilometer stages, while approximately 30,000 people are expected to participate in the 8-kilometer public run.

Over 200 skaters, including Sebastian Mirsch, a German athlete from Germany Skating National Team, will also run in the marathon.

Underlining that Türkiye’s largest mass sports organization will be held for the 44th time, Taş said that though many large-scale marathons were canceled during the pandemic, the Istanbul Marathon was not canceled and added that Türkiye became a model to the world in this sense.

“We think that the track record in 2018 will be broken. Istanbul does not have a flat area where people can run in two hours as a marathon course,” Taş stated.

“Istanbul marathon has a great brand value as the city connects two continents,” he added.

Stating that he will also participate in the marathon, Taş pointed out that he does not aim to finish the race with a medal while his goal is at least to pass the person who finished the race in last place.

Onur underlined that Spor İstanbul aims to play sports and exercise a daily routine for Istanbulites.

With over 60,000 people’s participation, an essential and desirable success in the sports will be achieved, while a total of 2,100 Turkish athletes will run in the 42-kilometer marathon this year, he noted.

“We always talk about the person who won the marathon, but we do not mention the person who finishes the marathon last. The participant who finishes this marathon last is the one who enjoys Istanbul the most,” Onur pointed out.

“Last year, the last runner of the marathon completed the track in a total of six hours, 24 minutes and 47 seconds,” he added.

İmamoğlu stated that the Istanbul Marathon became a traditional race for the city and has a special place in the world, adding that they will work together to improve this unique organization.

After the speeches, four different T-shirts to be used by competitors running in different categories were introduced.

Last year, Ugandan athlete Victor Kiplangat won the marathon men’s title, while Kenyan athlete Sheila Jerotich won the women’s title at the intercontinental footrace.

The Istanbul Marathon is organized by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and Spor İstanbul and sponsored by N Kolay Payment Institution, a subsidiary of Aktif Investment Bank.