Athens Half Marathon
25 - 40 €
Pros
- Experience in the country of marathon
- Budget friendly
Cons
- Tough track for a city run
- Crowded
| Edition | 11th (2023) |
| IAAF Road Race Label | - |
| Expected participants | 7000 |
| Distances | 21K, 5K, 3K, 1K |
| Type of race | Hilly, City run, multi event |
| Time limit | 3 hours |
How many runners dream of participating to an event in Athens? I am therefore glad to review the Athens half marathon for travelling runners.
The full marathon official event connects Athens with Marathon, as it was covered by the Greek soldier Philippides to deliver the message of victory against the Persians in Athens’ acropolis, 2500 years ago.
This historical event inspired the visionary count De Coubertin: he introduced the 42.195 km race in the program of the first edition of the modern Olympic Games in Athens, changing the world of running forever.
Spring offers the shorter and beautiful Athens Half Marathon event in the Greek capital. The 9th edition of this event will host in 2020 about 25000 runners (5-6000 for the half marathon). The challenging path, with interesting uphill traits, and the strategic collocation in March, make it a good preparation for a spring marathon.
The EXPO is located in a different area (Maroussi) than the start (in the beautiful Syntagma square). All operations regarding BIB number retrieving went fairly well, with acceptable waiting time.
The course develops on a triangle-shaped loop the runners must cover twice, and with about 240 m of elevation gain.
I came here with my running partner in crime, Cristina, one of her friends, my brother and his girlfriend. Athens is a charming Mediterranean with great food: difficult to go home unhappy. In fact, everything went well, except my time of 2h 22min: classic payback of a lazy winter!
All in all, I really liked this experience as a travelling runner. Athens: run, culture, food, traditions in a single word. Don’t miss it! 🙂
If you have further questions please contact me and read my travelling tips with options for booking your journey to Athens!
Read here more about the next edition of this race!
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