| Prague Marathon | |
|---|---|
 Finish line outsideSt. Nicholas Church in 2008 | |
| Date | May |
| Location | Prague,Czech Republic |
| Event type | Road |
| Distance | Marathon |
| Established | 1995 (30 years ago) (1995) |
| Course records | Men's:2:05:39 (2010) Eliud KiptanuiWomen's:2:19:46 (2019)  Lonah Chemtai |
| Official site | Prague Marathon |
| Participants | 4,602 finishers (2022)[1] 7,299 finishers (2019)[2] |
ThePrague Marathon (also known asPrague International Marathon (PIM)) is an annualroadmarathon held in the city ofPrague in theCzech Republic each May. It was founded in 1995 and has grown to become a significant event, being awardedIAAF Gold Label status.[3] Prague's marathon course has been voted one of the most beautiful in the world.[4]
The inaugural marathon was held in 1995 with the support ofEmil Zátopek, a Czech runner who had wonthe marathon at the 1952 Summer Olympics despite never having run a marathon before.[5][6][7] For its inaugural year, the marathon itself had 985 participants, while runners in two additional races, measuring 9.2 and 4.8 km (5.7 and 3.0 mi), made up the rest of the roughly 15,000 participants in total.[5][8]
The 2020 edition of the race was cancelled due to thecoronavirus pandemic, with all registrants given the option of transferring their entry to 2021 or 2022 or transferring their entry to another runner.[a][10][11] Similarly, the 2021 in-person edition was also cancelled due to the pandemic, with all registrants given the option of transferring their entry to 2022 or exchanging it for a shop voucher.[12][13]
The Prague Marathon event takes place over a full weekend and comprises several events, including the Prague International Marathon, the Volkswagen Family Minimarathon 4.2 km, the Allianz Eco Walk 2 km, and the In-line party 6.5 km - a skating event. The Hervis Prague Half Marathon, which is also awardedIAAF Gold Label status, is held each March or April.[14]
Since its inception in 1995, the men's race has been dominated by East African runners, with Kenyan athletes in particular winning 13 titles alone.
Angola-born Portuguese runnerHélder Ornelas became the first and so far only European men's winner in 2007. The winners of the women's race have been mainly Russian and Kenyan.Alena Vinnitskaya of Belarus is the most successful women's athlete however, with her three straight wins from 1996 to 1998.
KenyanAlexander Mutiso is the men's record holder with 2:05:09 hours. IsraeliLonah Chemtai Salpeter has the women's course best of 2:19:45 hours.[15]
In 2019, Moroccan runnerEl Mahjoub Dazza crossed the finish line first, but was disqualified in 2020 by theAthletics Integrity Unit forusing a prohibited substance, as determined by abnormalities in hisathlete biological passport.[16][17][18] Ethiopian runnerDawit Wolde was named the winner after Dazza's disqualification.[16][19]
Key:
Battle of the Teams is an elite-only event inaugurated in 2021 during the coronavirus pandemic.[22][23]
| Ed. | Year | Men's winner | Time[b] | Women's winner | Time[b] | Rf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2021 | Benson Kipruto (KEN) | 2:10:16 | Purity Rionoripo (KEN) | 2:20:14 | [23] |
| Athlete | Wins | Category | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
 Alena Vinnitskaya (BLR) | 3 | Women's | 1996, 1997, 1998 |
 Alina Ivanova (RUS) | 2 | Women's | 2000, 2006 |
| Nailiya Yulamanova (RUS) | 2 | Women's | 2007, 2008 |
| Country | Total | Men's | Women's |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya | 27 | 18 | 9 |
 Ethiopia | 11 | 5 | 6 |
| Russia | 6 | 0 | 6 |
 Belarus | 3 | 0 | 3 |
 Italy | 2 | 0 | 2 |
 Qatar | 2 | 2 | 0 |
 Moldova | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Tanzania | 1 | 1 | 0 |
 Portugal | 1 | 1 | 0 |
 United States | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Israel | 1 | 0 | 1 |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
