Over 30,000 in 11th Moscow Marathon

It was held for the 11th time and attracted a record number of runners. The event was supported by the Moscow Government and the Moscow City Department.

More than 30,000 people joined the race: on Saturday, October 12th, some participants ran the 10 km race, and on Sunday, October 13th, they completed the 42.2 km marathon. In addition, the event featured the Kids Run for young runners aged 4 to 13, as well as a corporate relay race and an open student relay race (for the first time in the marathon’s history). A total of 127 and 41 teams took part in these relays, respectively.

This year, the Moscow Marathon became part of the BRICS Marathon League – a large-scale project that at first united the three largest marathons in Russia (in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kazan), with the goal of eventually incorporating marathons from other BRICS countries. For almost 400 participants, the Moscow Marathon was the third race in the marathon trilogy, while for over 2,500 participants, it was their second race.

Thanks to the marathon’s inclusion in the League, professional athletes from countries such as Kenya, Morocco, Ethiopia, and China participated in the race for the first time in a long while, competing against some of Russia’s strongest athletes.

The overall winner of the Moscow Marathon among men was Moroccan athlete Youness Bennar. He completed the marathon in 2:11:34 and set a new competition record. The previous record – 2:13:40 – hadn’t been beaten since 2016 and was held by Artem Alekseev. Among women, the overall winner was Russian athlete Alexandra Morozova with a result of 2:30:35.

The fastest Russian was Dmitry Nedelin, who completed the 42.2 km race in 2:11:40, which is also faster than the previous competition record. This means his time is the best result ever achieved by a Russian athlete in the history of the Moscow Marathon. Among women, Alexandra Morozova also became the winner in the national ranking.

Saturday also saw intense competition: the winner of the 10 km race was Rinas Akhmadeev with a result of 0:28:43, while among women, Svetlana Aplachkina was the first to reach the finish line with a time of 0:31:31, setting a new 10 km race record. She received a 500,000-ruble bonus from OTP Bank for breaking the competition record.

As always, all finishers were rewarded with medals, inspired by the landmarks runners pass along the course. This time, the design was inspired by one of the domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral from a bird’s-eye view. A special medal was prepared for participants who completed all three BRICS League marathons. Those runners for whom the Moscow Marathon was their second in the series received special pins after crossing the finish line.

Spectators also joined the main running event: along the 42.2 km race route, there were over 60 support stations, and around 30 more were set up along the 10 km distance. Here, everyone could follow the race live, cheer for the race leaders, and support friends, family, or even complete strangers. After all, the love, faith, and support of the crowd are crucial for all participants.

In the start and finish area, during both the marathon expo days and race day, everyone was traditionally welcomed in the Moscow Marathon tent, located in the South Sports Center square at Luzhniki.

This weekend, all participants and guests also had the chance to take part in a large-scale environmental initiative organized by the Moscow Marathon team and the race’s eco-partner, SIBUR. As in the last few years, all disposable cups, which are difficult to recycle, were replaced with small plastic bottles at the drinks and food stations. Recycling bins were placed along the course and in the start and finish area for collecting plastic. All plastic bottles collected separately after the race will be sent for recycling. SIBUR uses this recycled material to produce Vivilen granules, which include recycled plastic and are used to create new eco-friendly packaging.