Running News Daily

German Hendel dominated the Mattoni Ceske Budejovice Half Marathon

This year’s half marathon in České Budějovice was newly held under the brand Mattoni Running Festival. The winner was German Sebastian Hendel. Among the women, Ukraine’s Maryna Nemchenko triumphed, improving the European record. Patrik Vebr and Hana Homolkova were the best Czech runners, which carries the World Athletic Road Race Label.

The race

The winner in the České Budějovice Half Marathon was Sebastian Hendel from Germany. From the start he was in a large lead pack, but before the halfway point he was running alone. Hendel ran the South Bohemia half marathon well and on pace to break the European record. However, he missed it by half a minute, finishing in the time of 1:03:38.

“I’m really happy that my winning streak in RunCzech races continues. I tried to break the time under one hour and three minutes. It was good at the tenth kilometre, but as time went on it got worse and my legs were hurting. It was a great experience, I enjoyed my first start in České Budějovice,” said Hendel. “When I was running back to the square, many people were cheering my name. It was a really great atmosphere,” added Hendel.

The second place went to Italian Daniele D’Onofrio, and third was Ukrainian Mykola Mevsha, who improved his personal best significantly. The best Czech runner was Patrik Vebr (1:08:38), bettered Petr Pechek and Tomáš Křivohlávek.

“Although I don’t really like to run races in training pace, I chose this strategy for today. My coach and I decided to do it mainly for health reasons and also because of the upcoming track races. But the overall assessment is positive and I am glad that especially my health is holding up,”  Vebr summed up.

The fastest woman was Maryna Nemchenko from Ukraine, who ran a significant part of the race alone trying to catch some men to help her pace. “If I had run with another female competitor, it would have been easier, running alone is hard. I always tried to catch up with whoever was ahead of me, I’m satisfied,” Nemchenko assessed after the race.

The Ukrainian surpassed the best European race time of Tereza Hrochova from 2022 by half a minute. Her compatriot Nataliya Semenovych finished second, while Moldova’s Lilia Fisikovici finished third. Hana Homolkova succeeded in a close battle between the Czech competitors, beating Aneta Císařová. Tereza Jagošová finished third.

(06/03/2024) Views: 417 ⚡AMP
by Christopher Kelsall

Ethiopians Lemi Berhanu Hayle and Bedatu Hirpa Badane win the Prague International Marathon

Ethiopian Lemi Berhanu Hayle won the 29th edition of the Prague Marathon in commanding fashion, running away from the field at 25km and not giving anyone else a chance. His winning time was 2:08:44, one minute and 44 seconds ahead of second place Kipkemoi Kiprono. Martin Edlman (2:22:19) produced the surprise performance of the day, becoming the first Czech finisher.

“The race had a great standard. You never get tired of seeing the joy on the runners’ faces. We are all already looking forward to the jubilee thirtieth year,” said Carlo Capalbo, president of the RunCzech organizing committee, whose events have been awarded World Athletics labels.

The men

Last year’s race record by Alexander Mutiso still stands at 2:05:09, but Lemi Berhanu Hayle, winner of the 2016 Boston Marathon, put on a great performance. “I am very happy. I wanted to win here. And it worked, so I’m very happy. It was difficult mainly because of the nasty wind,” Hayle said. Kenyan Kipkemoi Kiprono (2:10:28) finished in second place, while his compatriot Joshua Kipkemboi Kogo (2:10:51) secured third place.Four runners who had already run under 2:05 were competing for the win.

Herpasa Negasa Kitesa, Abebe Negewo Degefa, Lemi Berhanu Hayle and Abayneh Degu Tsehay all came to the race in good form, but today Hayle was able to pull away from them with ease and secure a clear victory. “I felt very good from the beginning. It was a beautiful race, Prague is beautiful and the fans cheered us on all along the track. I would like to come back here again. It came out perfectly,” said the Ethiopian champion.

The women

In the women’s race, Ethiopian Bedatu Hirpa Badane won in the time of 2:23:41, surprising even the biggest favourites. In second place was the Kenyan Dorcas Jepchirchir Tuitoek clocking a 2:24:50. She was followed by another Ethiopian in Amare Shewarge Alene (2:27:32) who at 37 years of age was only minutes behind her personal best, despite the challenging conditions.

The Czech Republic champion was Petra Pastorová (2:47:03). “I am extremely happy. Considering my age, it was difficult, but I enjoyed it,” said the 47-year-old winner.

(05/06/2024) Views: 587 ⚡AMP
by Christopher Kelsall

How Emil Zátopek helped create the Prague International Marathon

Founder of Prague International Marathon Carlo Capalbo opens up about meeting in 1995 that changed everything

This weekend’s Prague International Marathon will be the 29th edition of the event and, courtesy of organizers RunCzech, has become one of Europe’s fastest-growing road races.

It was founded back in 1995 by Carlo Capalbo, alongside 1988 Olympic men’s marathon champion Gelindo Bordin and quadruple Olympic gold medalist Emil Zátopek.

Zátopek, nicknamed the “Czech Locomotive”, is one of the country’s greatest ever athletes. He is best known for being the only person in history to claim three Olympic gold medals over the 5000m, 10,000m and the marathon in the same Games, at Helsinki 1952.

Incredibly, Zátopek’s gold in the marathon came in his first ever race over 26.2 miles.

The Czech athlete was also the first runner in history to go sub-29 minutes in the 10,000m and went undefeated in his first 38 races over the distance from 1948 through to 1954.

Zátopek’s legacy isn’t just defined by his athletics achievements though. The 8000-plus runners that will take to the streets on Sunday (May 5) for the Prague International Marathon – starting and ending around the Old Town Square – can thank Zátopek, Capalbo and Bordin for their vision back in 1995.

“You know, nearly 30 years ago I had this simple and beautiful dream,” Capalbo tells AW. “A friend of mine [Bordin] said to me that we should organize a marathon. So we went to see Mr Zátopek. That was the start of everything.

“When we went and met Mr Zátopek, we started off with a coffee and bábovka. At the end we tasted some lovely brandy that Mr Zátopek had. After that, we’d devised the marathon but we needed to work out where the people would run.

“So Mr Zátopek decided to draw the course for the Prague International Marathon on a napkin. The rest is history.”

The elite winners in the inaugural year of the event were Ethiopian Turbo Tummo (2:12:44) and Ukrainian Svetlana Tkach (2:38:33).

Since then, the course records have plummeted and are currently held by Alexander Mutiso (2:05:09 – 2023) and Lonah Salpeter (2:19:46 – 2019), although sadly Zátopek did not live to see the recent races as he died in 2000 aged 78.

Prague is a historically quick meet and the fact that the IOC have extended the qualification period for the Olympic marathon past the April 30 date, to include the Prague International Marathon, says a lot.

It means runners from a multitude of continents have flocked to the Czech Republic to meet the standard.

“The Prague International Marathon is a very prestigious event for both the IOC and World Athletics,” Capalbo says.

“There are so many people running to get the standard. The Olympics is the pinnacle of sport and it’s a celebration.”

Capalbo is also keen to stress of the importance of the masses. He states that running is much more than just one individual and his mission is to create sports events to make “people happy and healthy”, plus making the sport “more watchable for the general public”.

“This is not a normal job and running is not a normal sport,” he adds. “It’s a little bit specific. We wanted to give the perception that the winners of running are those who finish the race, not just those first across the line. The marathon is a fantastic advertisement for the city and it’s great for people’s mental health.

“We are a small country in the Czech Republic and many people come from abroad to the marathon. It’s a great income for Prague. This generates happiness and love for an event which is a tradition for us.”

There will also be the added element of “Battle of the Teams”. Successfully introduced last year, the idea is that both masses and elites are split into teams. It means that the placing of every runner matters.

This year, there will be four teams: Team Mattoni, Team Prague Airport, Team Turkish Airlines and Team Volkswagen.

“There is still the elephant in the room,” Capalbo says. “The masses don’t know the name of the winners. It’s why we’ve done Battle of the Teams so the people taking part in the marathon can look at the names of the elite athletes.

“We want to get the people close to the elite athletes. They also need European legends like Paula Radcliffe, Sebastian Coe and Rosa Mota to look up to. When you go to watch a football match you go crazy for your team and that’s what I need to see in running.”

(05/03/2024) Views: 570 ⚡AMP
by Tim Adams

Sisay Lemma and Zewditu Gelaw triumph in Ankara

Ethiopian duo are too good for the rest as they claim titles in Turkish capital’s first ever international half-marathon, writes Wendy Sly

Sisay Lemma and Zewditu Gelaw won the inaugural Runkara Half-Marathon, a landmark race for organisers in Turkey.

Until Sunday (Oct 8), Ankara had been the only capital city in the world without a road race event – despite a population of over six million.

Appropriately starting within a stone’s throw of the Ataturk Mausoleum – Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded modern Turkey 100 years ago this month – the course looped around the western side of the city centre in glorious conditions.

The first ever international half-marathon in the Turkish capital had 4000 entries, including an eye-catching elite line-up.

Lemma, the 2021 London Marathon champion, was one of the standout names in the men’s race while home favourite Sultan Haydar looked to challenge Zewditu Gelaw and Roselidah Jepketer in the women’s field.

The men’s event saw Victor Mutai and Julius Kipchumba set the early pace as the leaders went through the undulating first 10km in 29:27. By the 12km mark a small group of six had broken away. They went through in 38:05 and at a solid pace, bearing in mind the hills and 860m altitude.

Bethwell Yegon, who finished second behind Guye Adola at the 2021 Berlin Marathon, battled Lemma for a large proportion of the race. Lemma continued to push hard and, around the 50-minute mark, with roughly 3km to go, broke away. The Ethiopian won by 18 seconds in a time of 61:09 ahead of compatriot Chimdessa Debele (61:27), while Kenya’s Vincent Nyageo 61:44 was third.

In the women’s race, Haydar – a former Ethiopian now running for Turkey – went through 10km in 32:01 (67:30 pace) along with Gelaw and Jepketer. Gelaw was the pre-race favourite and made her mark on the race when it mattered the most.

Running a strong last 6km, the Ethiopian finished in 68:28 to take first place, with Haydar (69:09) in second and Kenyan Vivian Kosgei (70:10), making her half-marathon debut, taking third.

The Runkara event is sure to go from strength to strength when finding its place on the international road racing calendar. Race Director Victoria Blyth was instrumental in putting it together, alongside support from RunCzech.

(10/10/2023) Views: 785 ⚡AMP
by Athletics Weekly

2022 Mattoni Ceske Budejovice Half Marathon will Celebrate 10th Anniversary

RunCzech running league and Ceske Budejovice celebrate! The 10th year of Mattoni 1/2 Marathon Ceske Budejovice will start already on Saturday, June 4.

“It will be important for us to commemorate the 10th year of this race. We really appreciate the great atmosphere and enthusiastic spectators we meet in Budějovice every year. We would like to prepare an exceptional experience for them during the marathon weekend, which will celebrate our tenth anniversary”, explained the manager for regional races Igor Murko.

Mattoni Ceske Budejovice Half Marathon is part of the RunCzech running league. The race again won the highest award for road runs with a five-star certificate from European Athletics.

Almost 3,000 runners from the Czech Republic and abroad will be at the start of the race is specific to the fact that up to 40% of participants are from southern Bohemia.

That makes a completely unique atmosphere at the start. Mattoni Ceske Budejovice Half Marathon starts at 7 p.m. from Přemysl Otakar IISquare. The race excels with a fast track, beautiful scenery, and a friendly atmosphere that will delight both runners and spectators along the track.

The Event offers more categories than “just” 1/2 Marathon. In addition to the 1/2 Marathon, a 2Run is prepared for runners who do not yet feel completely prepared for the whole race. The relay race is an ideal alternative for team runners.

Of course, the traditional dm family run which will start at 4 p.m, is prepared for all family members. The undemanding 3 km long course in the center of Karlovy Vary is really suitable for everybody.

(05/27/2022) Views: 1,178 ⚡AMP

The 9th edition of Mattoni Karlovy Vary Half Marathon is Around the Corner

The Mattoni Karlovy Vary Half Marathon is approaching. This Saturday, May 21, starts one of the most beautiful Czech races! 

For several years now, RunCzech has been organizing an international race in Karlovy Vary, which attracts professional athletes and enthusiasts runners.

The 9th edition of the Mattoni 1/2 Marathon Karlovy Vary will start from Nábřeží Osvobození at 6:00 p.m. Since registrations are still free, don’t hesitate and sign up today!

“RunCzech offers to runners a truly unique sports experience. Karlovy Vary, along with ten other European spa towns, is now inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List and the Mattoni Karlovy Vary Half Marathon is certainly one of the best ways to fully enjoy the heritage of a beautiful spa town,” said Igor Murko, manager of the RunCzech regional races.

The marathon will feature several categories on Saturday. In addition to the 1/2 Marathon, a 2Run is prepared for runners who do not yet feel completely ready for the whole race.

The first competitor runs 10 km and the second then finishes 11 km to the distance of the half Marathon. The relay race is ideal alternative for team runners. Of course, the traditional dm family run which will start at 4 p.m, is prepared for all family members.

The undemanding 3 km long course in the center of Karlovy Vary is really suitable for everybody.

The first steps of the competitors always lead to the Hotel Thermal where runners can pick up the start numbers. The Running Expo starts on Friday 20.5. (12:00 – 18:00) and will last until Saturday between 10:00 and 15:00.

To pick up the start number, you need your ID and an assigned start number from the RunCzech application, which runners will also find in the Runners ID profile.

(05/18/2022) Views: 1,303 ⚡AMP

Kenyans Take First Prize at Prague Half Marathon

RunCzech finally returned to Prague after three years. Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon was attended by around 9000 runners, among them also elite world athletes.

Four Kenyans ran to the finish line in under one hour. The Prague Half Marathon was dominated by Keneth Kiprop Renju in a time of 59:28.

Philemon Kiplimo Kimaiyo finished second and Mathew Kipkorir Kimeli was third.

The fastest woman of this year’s edition was Nesphine Jepleting with a time of 1:06:57. The best Czech runner was Jiří Homoláč, who managed the half marathon in 1:04:36, the fastest female Czech was Hana Homolková (1:20:31).

“I really liked the race, I enjoyed it a lot. Even though it was too cold, it was good. I had a more critical moment in the middle of the half marathon. Even though I didn’t feel pressure on myself, I wanted to win,” Renju said at the finish. “The weather caught me by surprise, I didn’t expect it to be so cold. The worst was the headwind, which made it really hard in some moments. I wanted to break my personal best, but I’m glad I showed such time. It’s a good start to the season, next time I could reach my maximum,” Jepleting said.

Already at the fifth kilometer, a group of elite runners was formed, eight Kenyans had the same time. At the tenth kilometer, only a group of four, Keneth Kiprop Renju, Philemon Kiplimo Kimaiyo, Bernard Kimeli and Mathew Kipkorir Kimeli, were at the front. Everyone had a time of 27:52.

The same four runners led the fifteenth kilometer. Before the finish, Renju and Kimaiyo grabbed each other, after crossing the Mánes Bridge, the first mentioned one broke away, who then first reached the finish.

“The race was very windy, from the sixth kilometer it was causing problems because there was a headwind. I had to lean into it from the seventh kilometer. I would like to run here again next year because this track is fast. A world record may fall here. Despite the conditions here, it was fast,” Renju added at the finish. A world record may fall here. Despite the conditions here, it was fast,” Renju added at the finish.

For the women, From the 10th kilometer, the favourites Nesphine Jepleting and Chepet Irine Cheptai broke away from the rest, they were also at the front at the fifteenth kilometer and built up a one-and-a-half-minute lead over the others. At the finish, Jepleting finally rejoiced in the triumph.

“I could run faster, but it was too cold and windy. During the race, I doubted I could win. But the mental strength, my head, helped me. In the group we ran until the twelfth kilometer, then we accelerated as we wanted,” said the fastest woman Nesphine Jepleting.

Yeremchuk ran for Ukraine

Sofia Yaremchuk, who is originally from Ukraine but has been racing for Italy for a year, improved her personal best. She finished fifth in a time of under 1 hour and 10 minutes.

“I ran for Ukraine and for all the people and men who are fighting in Ukraine. I want to tell everyone that Ukraine does not want war, the whole world does not want war, we all want peace,” Yaremchuk added, showing a time of 1:09:09. “I’m happy because I have my new record and I finished with the Ukrainian flag.”

(04/02/2022) Views: 1,180 ⚡AMP

Kenyan Philemon Kiplimo set to take part in the Prague Half Marathon

The start list of the thrilling Sportisimo 1/2 Marathon Prague is full of big names and future global stars. Kenyan Philemon Kiplimo, a member of the RunCzech Racing team, will also be seen at Prague’s fast course on Saturday, April 2.

In addition to the eighth man of the world tables with a personal best of 58:11, his compatriots Kennedy Kimutai and Keneth Renju will be among the favorites for the victory.

The best known Czech athlete on the course will be Jiří Homoláč. Among women, the contenders are Brenda Jepleting and Irine Cheptai from Kenya, with strong running also being expected from Petra Kamínková and Hana Homolková from the Czech Republic.

In the last 5 years, the world record has been broken on five occasions here, at home. In the half marathon in September 2020, during the middle pandemic, Kenyan Peres Jepchirchi took care of it in time 1:05:34. Twenty-three-year-old Philemon Kiplimo will be making another personal best effort, trying to improve on the time he ran in Valencia two years ago.

The winner of the half marathons in Boston and Bahrain celebrated second place in the Czech Republic two years ago and will be looking for a victory. His great opponent will certainly be his compatriot Kennedy Kimutai, ranked 11th on the World Athletics all-time half marathon list.

Last year, he shined at the half marathon in Valencia, where he was fourth with 58:28. Another athlete to watch for is Keneth Renju, placed just four places below (7 seconds) Kennedy and aiming at the podium.

The best Czech endurance runner, Jiří Homoláč (1:03:23) is going to keep pace with the rest of the field. The record of the Prague Half Marathon is held by Ethiopian Atsedu Tsegay, who in 2012 stormed through the course in a time of 58:47.

Among the women, Kenyan Irine Cheptai and Nelly Jepchumba and, especially, Brenda Jepleting are expected to fight for the top positions.

The Sportisimo 1/2 Marathon Prague which starts at 10:00 am on Saturday, April 2, after two years of Covid-19 related break, will send a strong message of peace.

Among other activities, the organizers plan to hand out symbolic bracelets in Ukrainian national colors before the start.

(03/31/2022) Views: 1,300 ⚡AMP

RUNCZECH PRAGUE RACES CANCELED BECAUSE THEY ARE TOO BIG TO TAKE PLACE DURING PANDEMIC.

With social distancing and other limiting rules still in place for mass participation events, as well as with all uncertainties surrounded by new waves of virus mutations, RunCzech has elected to cancel their highly popular Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon and the Birell Prague Grand Prix, planned for September 4-5, as well as the Prague Relay planned for August 25.

Staging a world class event requires months of preparations, which the organizers don’t have at disposal under the circumstances, and RunCzech prizes quality too much to jeopardize it.

Even if there was more time, considering the size of the events, the organizers would have been required to stagger the start of those races. And with tens of thousands of runners participating, the events would have dragged on endlessly. Staggered starts would have left runners standing around for hours. It would have been a burden on the volunteers who already give so much. And it would have shut down the city for far too long.

According to Mr. Capalbo, the president of the organizing committee, “the citizens of Prague enthusiastically support what we’re doing here. They celebrate with us. But closing the city for whole weekend and keeping everyone waiting that long would be unfair to the runners and to the locals.”

To all registered runners that have paid the entry fee, the organizers are making available the option to either transfer their registration to 2022, or to transform the registration fee into a voucher for the e-shop www.allrunnersarebeautiful.com or to donate their amount to the project ‘Get up and run’ for students that helps to improve the sport facilities in high schools.

Meanwhile, RunCzech is still planning to stage its next regional events, the Generali ÄŒeská Red Run on June 24 and the Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon on August 14, which are in line with the health and safety measures and are feasible to take place.

On top, starting from August and lasting until the end of October, the organizers offer a free of charge virtual running challenge called Mattoni FreeRun Run & Plog. The project is linked with the Plogging Cesko association and together will inspire runners to collect waste while running and make their region greener.

The destiny of the Volkswagen Prague Marathon and the events in Usti nad Labem, Liberec, and Ceske Budejovice is being discussed and monitored daily. The organizers will release further information in the month of August.

The organization is hopeful that, with more people receiving the Covid vaccine, their regular race schedule will resume soon. In the meantime, Mr. Capalbo has a simple message of hope for runners. “You keep training. And we’ll keep thinking.”

(07/22/2021) Views: 1,319 ⚡AMP

RunCzech introduces battle of the Teams marathon event

RunCzech has announced plans for an event named Battle of the Teams, a competition that will bring 32 of the world’s best runners together to race on teams in this year’s elite-only Prague Marathon. Four teams of eight runners (four men and four women) will line up in Prague to compete in this game-changing race, which will take the marathon from its usual wholly individual run and turn it into a team event. The Battle of the Teams is set for May 30, and its unique format will make it a must-see race. 

As noted on the Battle of the Teams website, the crew at RunCzech asked the question “What if we could present [the marathon] as a team sport?” In this case, “the drama doesn’t end when the first runner crosses the finish line. In fact, it’s just getting started.” Like a cross-country race, this team format forces athletes to push until the very end, no matter how poorly they may be running, because every second counts for their team.

While there will be eight runners per team, only six will register scores. Two runners will race as backups, and if any of their teammates have to drop out, they will move into scoring position. Athletes earn points based on their finishing times, and the team with the highest cumulative score in the end takes the win. In addition to one’s general time earning points, if a runner drops a PB, he or she will earn a 10 per cent bonus in points for their team. 

Since this is a RunCzech event, every team will feature an athlete from the Czech Republic. The rest of the runners will be international athletes. The makeup of each team will be determined in a “draft” in which each runner’s PB from the past four years is taken into account. They will then be divided into the four teams to make the field as evenly distributed as possible. 

Pre-race hype 

RunCzech has a few plans to get people excited for this race. Firstly, each team will be assigned a “captain,” although this person will not be running. Instead, these captains will be other Czech Republican athletes, such as soccer, tennis and hockey stars, each of whom will promote their teams and hopefully attract attention from the Czech public.

Captains will represent their teams at the draft, which will be televised, much like the NBA or NHL drafts are. This will be another chance for organizers to hype up the event before race day. Finally, each team will have a corporate sponsor, and runners will wear uniforms for the race. 

Other races 

Alongside the Battle of the Teams race, the Czech national marathon championships will be run. In this race, about 80 athletes will compete, many of whom will use the opportunity to try to run under Olympic standard and qualify for the Tokyo Games. Other than those extra 80 runners, though, race organizers won’t accept any additional entries. 

For runners who want to be part of the RunCzech event, there will be a virtual race that will last most of May. The Volkswagen Prague Virtual Marathon will run from May 3 to 31, and 10 per cent of all registration fees will be donated to charities that the four Battle of the Teams squads will choose to support. In addition to this chunk of registration fees, the corporate sponsors involved in the Battle of the Teams will match this donation, doubling the total raised for charity. 

The Battle of the Teams has the potential to be one of the most interesting races of 2021, and it will be a can’t-miss event.

(04/15/2021) Views: 1,244 ⚡AMP
by Ben Snider-McGrath

2021 Volkswagen Prague Marathon set for October 10

Throughout the pandemic and against all odds RunCzech has found dozens of creative ways to stage safe, small running events, along with other ways of keeping the running community engaged.

But finding an opportunity to stage its signature event—the internationally acclaimed Volkswagen Prague Marathon—has eluded them until now.

Health and public officials feel that moving the race to the autumn will make it possible for RunCzech to safely host a large-scale event, and accommodate the thousands of fans and volunteers who will come out to support the participants on October 10.

Starting numbers will be in high demand. The capacity of the event will be determined with health and government officials with the priority being runners‘ safety and health.

Runners who registered in 2020 will have the option of transferring their registration to 2022.

RunCzech will also stage a bonus event, the Volkswagen Prague Virtual Marathon from 3–31 May, limited to 10,000 participants. Priority will be given to those who entered the Volkswagen Prague Marathon 2020.

(04/05/2021) Views: 1,254 ⚡AMP

Update on races that hopefully will be held in 2021 from David Monti

Here’s the latest news on marathons and road races which have come across my desk:

ELITE-ONLY MARATHON SCHEDULED FOR TUSCANY – Thanks in part to funding from the Xiamen Marathon, a European Olympic Marathon qualification race will take place at the Ampugnano Airport in Tuscany, Italy, on Sunday, April 11. The event is called the Xiamen Marathon & Tuscany Camp Global Elite Race and will feature some of the sport’s most recognizable marathoners, like:

Marius Kipserum (KEN), Suguru Osako (JPN), Angela Tanui (KEN), Leul Gebresilase (ETH), Gerda Steyn (RSA), Daniele Meucci (ITA), and Valeria Straneo (ITA). The race will begin with a one-kilometer loop, followed by eight 5-kilometer loops and a short straight to the finish line to make the full 42.195-kilometer distance. The course is World Athletics-certified, so all athletes have a chance to record Olympic Games qualifying marks. 

PRAGUE MARATHON MOVES TO THE FALL – RunCzech has announced that the Volkswagen Prague Marathon will be held in the fall for the first time; the event traditionally takes place on the first or second Sunday of May. The planned date is Sunday, October 10, the same day as the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. The capacity of the event will be determined later in coordination with Czech health officials.

RunCzech will also hold a virtual version of the race from May 3, through May 31. “We must never stop dreaming and believing,” said RunCzech president Carlo Capalbo through a statement. “There is light at the end of this tunnel. We’ll be there to cheer you on every step of the way, and we look forward to greeting you at the finish line with shouts of joy.”

AUSTRALIA AND ARGENTINA ALSO HOST OLYMPIC QUALIFYING MARATHONS – Elite-only marathons will be held in both Australia and Argentina in April to give athletes a chance to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics. In Australia, the race will be held in Sydney at the International Regatta Centre in Penrith on April 25, and be organized by Athletics Australia.

“In the same international calendar period, a number of our marathoners would normally be racing at the London Marathon, so this elite race in Sydney is an important opportunity,” said Athletics Australia president Mark Arbib through a statement. “By creating the course for elite athletes, we are allowing our marathoners to prepare with as much certainty as possible.” In Argentina, the race will be held in Santa Rosa, La Pampa on April 18. The Maraton Internacional A Pampa Traviesa will incorporate the Argentine national marathon championships.

SOME SPRING MARATHONS TO GO FORWARD – A few spring marathons will go forward as in-person races, despite the pandemic. Here is a summary (not a complete list):

April:

03 – Carmel Marathon (USA)

03 – Easter Marathon (AUS)

10 – Access Bank Lagos City Marathon (NGR), C&D Xiamen International Marathon (CHN)

11 – Beverly Wuxi Marathon (CHN), Canberra Times Canberra Marathon (AUS), Maratona Sao Paulo (BRA), Xuzhou Marathon (Chinese Olympic Trials)

18 – Debno Marathon (POL/elite only), Maraton Internacional A Pampa Traviesa (ARG), Zheng-Kai International Marathon (CHN)

24 – Valley O.NE Marathon Weekend (USA)

25 – Ascension Seton Austin Marathon (USA), Mercy Health Glass City Marathon (USA)

25 – Wrexham Elite Marathon & Half-Marathon (GBR)

May:

01 – Myrtle Beach Marathon (USA)

08 – Fort Worth Cowtown Marathon (USA)

16 – Belgrade Marathon (SRB), Alexander the Great Marathon (GRE), Copenhagen Marathon (DEN), Generali Milano City Marathon (ITA)

30 – Brescia Art Marathon (ITA)

MOST SPRING ROAD RACES MOVE TO THE FALL – One by one, race organizers are moving their spring road races to late summer or the fall. Here is a summary of some of those postponements:

August:

22 – Vitality Big Half (GBR), Generali Berliner Halbmarathon (GER), Kerzerslauf 15-K (SUI)

28 – Asics Sentrumsløpet 10-K (SWE)

September:

05 – Bath Half-Marathon (GBR), CSOB Bratislava City Marathon (SVK), Harmonie Mutuelle Semi-Marathon de Paris (FRA)

05 – Spar Women’s Challenge – Cape Town (RSA), Sportisimo Prague Int’l Half-Marathon (CZE)

06 – GTC Reedy River Run 10-K (USA)

11 – Göteborgsvarvet Half-Maraton (SWE)

12 – HASPA Marathon Hamburg (GER), Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10-Mile (USA), Meia-Maratona Internacional de Lisboa (POR)

12 – Brighton Marathon (GBR), Stramilano (ITA), Vienna City Marathon (AUT)

19 – Run Rome The Marathon (ITA)

25 – Cooper River Bridge Run (USA), Freihofer’s Run for Women (USA), NN City Pier City Half-Marathon (NED)

October:

02 – Azalea Trail Run 10-K (USA)

03 – Cardiff University Cardiff HM (GBR), 10-K Valencia Ibercaja (ESP), Virgin Money London Marathon (GBR)

10 – Bank of America Chicago Marathon (USA), Volkswagen Prague Marathon (CZE)

11 – Boston Marathon (USA)

17 – EDP Medio Maratón de Sevila (ESP), Schneider Electric Marathon de Paris (FRA), eDreams Mitja Marató de Barcelona (ESP), Tokyo Marathon (JPN)

24 – NN Marathon Rotterdam (NED), Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon (HKG), Oberbank Linz Donau Marathon (AUT)

29 – Jerusalem International Marathon (ISR)

November:

07 – Los Angeles Marathon Presented by Asics (USA), Zurich Marató de Barcelona (ESP)

14 – Movistar Medio Maratón Villa de Madrid (ESP)

21 – New Taipei City Wanjinshi Marathon (TPE)

28 – Limassol Marathon (CYP)

(04/03/2021) Views: 927 ⚡AMP
by David Monti Race Results Weekly

RunCzech keeps spreading health. This time at Mattoni Liberec Nature Run

Sunday, the 4th of October, was the last day before the start of the new stricter measures adopted by the Czech Government against the coronavirus, which is about to limit the organization of mass participation events in the near future.

Fortunately for RunCzech, it was a last minute occasion to deliver 23km and 12km Mattoni Liberec Nature Run. Accompanied by a 2,5km dm Family Run, as usual.

2067 runners in total enjoyed a sunny day in the beautiful city of Liberec in the north of the country. Soon after the start on the main square, the runners found themselves in a natural park, running up to a steep first half of the race, and rushing back to a downhill finish. 

The event was organized according to the actual health regulations. On top, the organizers implemented additional preventive actions for extra comfort and security for the runners. Participants had their masks on just before the start and immediately after the finish.

Everyone’s body temperature was checked. Corridors were limited to 50 people at a time. Disinfection stations were placed everywhere around. And some of the services such as massages or showers were abandoned in order to preserve social distancing. 

"It’s pleasing to see how runners quickly adapted to this new reality and they are careful and disciplined to follow our advices. The same way, we are very satisfied with everyone that took part in the organization of this event. The city, the region, and many others. It’s far from easy to stage a race for thousands in this period. There are many uncertainties and few last minute decisions.

Nevertheless, it is important to show capacity and willingness and demonstrate that sport events are spreading health and positive messages”, says Igor Murko, the project manager.Sportswise, the race was dominated by some of the finest Czech athletes.

Vit Pavlišta won the 23km race in a time of 1:23:47 and Zuzana Kocumová was the fastest woman with 1:43:47. The shorter 12km distance was fastest conquered by Jáchym KováÅ™ in a new course record time of 0:43:23.

Tereza Hrochová won the women’s category, same as the year before, in 0:48:47.“If all went according to our schedule for this Autumn, I would’ve been inviting you to Olomouc, Karlovy Vary, and Ceske Budejovice now.

Events that were supposed to take place in the next few weeks. Unfortunately, hereby I have to conclude our RunCzech season 2020 with hopes and with promise that we will come back soon with an interesting program for the next season. It’s our job.

"It’s our civic duty to try to spread health, to spread joy”, concludes Igor Murko. 

(10/05/2020) Views: 1,291 ⚡AMP

The 10th Mattoni Ústí nad Labem Half Marathon succeeded the pandemic challenge

Over two thousand runners flooded the streets of Ústí nad Labem during the jubilee 10th year of the Mattoni Half 10th year of the Mattoni Half Marathon. The event showed that even in difficult times caused by the coronavirus pandemic, it is worth fighting. The race was won by the Ukrainian runner Ivan-Bohdan Horodyskyi in men’s category, and dominated by a German in women’s. Kristina Hendel. Vít Pavlišta and Marcela Joglová confirmed this year's half-marathon dominance among the Czechs.

The 10th Mattoni Ústí nad Labem Half Marathon was organized in difficult conditions. Masks were worn everywhere except on the course itself; runners had to deal with limited refreshment stations. "It was not easy at all, but thanks to the cooperation with the region, the city, hygiene offices and everyone else, we succeeded. I am proud that Ústí could see a great race and I hope that we have inspired organizers of mass participation races in our country and in the world“, says Carlo Capalbo, President of the RunCzech Organizing Committee.

Ukrainian runner Ivan-Bohdan Horodyskyi finished in first place with a time of 1:03:54, Italian Said El Otmani (1:04:00) finished second, and Emmanuel Roudolff-Levisse (1:04:35) third. The best Czech Vít Pavlišta finished close behind him in a personal record of 1:04:48.

Thanks to Marcela Joglová and Eva Vrabcová Nývltová, the Czech flag appeared at the head of the women's race until halfway through, but in the end the European rivals were stronger. Gold is taken by Kristina Hendel from Germany (1:13:29), silver by Nuria Lugueros Diaz from Spain (1:14:17) and bronze by Italian Fatna Maraqui (1:14:34).

The fastest Czech woman Marcela Joglová finished in the overall fourth position in the time of 1:15:12. Eva Vrabcová Nývltová took second place during the big half marathon return. "Five kilometers of run, then next fifteen a struggle, and last two almost a walk. It was really hard," Eva evaluated her time 1:18:21 and added: "Some speed remained there, I have to pick up the pace again and not burn it next time. It is difficult with breastfeeding, my heartbeats jump a lot, and it’s like up and down.”

Part of the Saturday event was the traditional Spolchemie Czech Championship in Handbike and also a dm Family Run with 1113 participants. “Organizing an event seems to be a small miracle these days. Due to the special circumstances, we feel we are doing double more work in double less time. Practically, we are adding whole one more chapter of Covid 19 prevention in our organizing manuals”, says tiredly but obviously satisfied Tomaš Coufal, the director of this race.

However, even in this difficult times, RunCzech celebrated the 10th anniversary of the race with a beautiful present for all runners. A 10th anniversary jubillee high quality adidas running t-shirt.

Women

Women ranking | Name | Result | Nationality

1 | Hendel Kristina | 1:13:29 | GER

2 | Lugueros Diaz Nuria | 1:14:17 | ESP

3 | Maraoui Fatna | 1:14:34 | ITA

4 | Joglová Marcela | 1:15:12 | CZE

5 | Korneenko Ekaterina | 1:16:35 | BLR

6 | Vrabcová Nývltová Eva | 1:18:21 | CZE

7 | Hrochová Tereza | 1:19:45 | CZE

8 | Sekyrová Ivana | 1:21:42 | CZE

9 | Jíšová Barbora | 1:23:06 | CZE

10 | Davidová Lucie | 1:25:04 | CZE

Men

Men ranking | Name | Result | Nationality

1 | Horodyskyi Bohdan-Ivan | 1:03:54 | UKR

2 | El Otmani Said | 1:04:00 | ITA

3 | Roudolff-Levisse Emmanuel | 1:04:35 | FRA

4 | Pavlišta Vít | 1:04:48 | CZE

5 | Habz Azeddine | 1:04:53 | FRA

6 | Jimenez Alejandro | 1:05:06 | ESP

7 | Zemaník Jakub | 1:07:27 | CZE

8 | Vejmelka Daniel | 1:09:56 | CZE

9 | Sansom Ruben | 1:10:00 | NED

10 | Homoláč JiÅ™í | 1:11:47 | CZE

(09/19/2020) Views: 1,287 ⚡AMP

RunCzech is getting ready for its first half marathon this year in Ústí nad Labem

RunCzech is aligning its activities in accordance with the incoming regulations and we are constantly working on the 10th edition of the Mattoni Ústí nad Labem Half Marathon, which will happen on Saturday, 19th of September. 

The race program will include the dm Family Run, the Spolchemie Czech Handbike Championship, and of course the spotlight will be aimed at the main race. Race organisers from all around the world had big ambitions for this year. However, most of the races got cancelled and organisers had to look for other solutions.

Some are organizing races for elite runners only. Others are experimenting with virtual runs or coming up with interesting online challenges. Instead, the Mattoni Ústí nad Labem Half Marathon will be held in full shape - participation will consist of both amateurs and Pro runners from the Czech Republic and other European countries. 

RunCzech had to reschedule its races to Autumn, and the Prague races had been cancelled for this year completely. This has motivated the organizing committee to incredible actions. At the beginning of September, the World Record for the women-only half marathon was broken and the male runners contributed to achieve the 5th best time of all times in men’s half marathon.

Now it seems that RunCzech could be one of the few, if not the only organizer in the World that will be able to organize mass participation events as we know them. Everything will be, of course, aligned with the recommendations of the local hygiene station, that is in daily cooperation with the RunCzech team.

A safety protocol has been created, which enables us to host the race, summarizing and communicating to runners all necessary rules. Among other things, it mainly covers the regulations regarding the risk of spreading the virus, the specific hygienic requirements, and the cooperation with healthcare providers.

In agreement with the director of the Hygiene Station of the Ústí region, Dr. Lenka Šimůnková, the representatives of the city and the region and following the Ministry of Health's special regulations, RunCzech prepared the following instructions:

Time of start is changed so that there is larger difference between the races

dm Family Run at 11AM (and possible start in waves)

Handbike race at 1PM (25 participants maximum)

Half Marathon at 3PM (start in waves - first 1000 people at 3PM, next wave starts minutes later)

Technical area will be divided in two sectors monitoring the right amount of people and making sure the two groups never meet before or after the race.

Only healthy runners will participate controlled by runners’ declarations and by preventively measuring their temperature.

Runners will be allowed in the starting corridor for a minimum amount of time. Corridors have been enlarged to secure 2 meters distance between runners.

Runners will be requested to wear masks before and after the race, including in the technical area. The technical area is adjusted to secure a fast way out without any possible delays. 

Technical adjustments:

Significant increase of disinfection stations and information signs around the technical and start/finish area.

Usage of safety gloves for transporting refreshments or giving out medals.

Regular disinfection of sanitary equipment (toilets).

Cancellation of foam sponges for refreshment.

Refreshment points served without any physical contact.

No fruits at refreshment stations. Only whole bananas served at the finish.

Sugar and salt served only in full and closed one-use packages.

Changing rooms will be placed outdoor.

Taping services - cancelled

Showers - cancelled

Massages - cancelled

After race party - cancelled

Good luck to everyone and stay safe.  

(09/16/2020) Views: 1,386 ⚡AMP

Peres Jepchirchir and Sheila Chepkirui are set to clash in Prague

When it became clear that it wouldn’t be possible to hold the Birell Grand Prix in Prague, organisers of the World Athletics Gold Label road race set about creating an alternative event. After much planning, RunCzech has been given the green light to stage the Prague 21.1km, an invitation-only elite half marathon on a looped circuit in Letna Park in the Czech capital on 5 September.

Thirty-five of the world’s best road runners will be in action on Saturday morning, running 16-and-a-half laps of the 1280m course. The men’s race will start at 6:20am local time, and then the women’s race will begin at 8:00am. The event will be broadcast live on Czech Television and spread to the whole world.

It is hoped that the flat course and intense competition will lead to fast times. The Czech all-comers’ records stand at 58:47 for men and 1:04:52 for women. As the women’s race is being held separate from the men’s, they may also have their eye on breaking the women-only world record of 1:06:11.

Peres Jepchirchir, the 2016 world half marathon champion, leads the women's field. The 26-year-old Kenyan set a world record of 1:05:06 – which has since been broken – back in 2017, then became pregnant and gave birth to her daughter later that year. She returned to form in 2019, winning the Lisbon Half Marathon in 1:06:54.

Sheila Chepkirui may have the slowest official PB of the field, but that’s largely due to the fact she has contested just one half marathon to date and it was at altitude in Nairobi. Given her record at other distances – including her two sub-30-minute clockings for 10km, one of which was in Prague – the 29-year-old Kenyan will be one of the big favourites this weekend.

Ethiopia’s 2015 world 5000m silver medallist Senbere Teferi and Kenya’s Edith Chelimo are the two other sub-66-minute runners in the women’s field.

Joan Melly Chelimo and Netsanet Gudeta had originally been set to compete, but both are late withdrawals due to injury.

With nine sub-60-minute performers, the men’s field is also of an extremely high standard.

Stephen Kiprop finished third in Prague last year, just two months after clocking a lifetime best of 58:42 to win the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon. He stands equal sixth on the world all-time list, but he’ll be up against Kibiwott Kandie, another sub-59-minute runner, and two-time Prague winner Benard Kimeli.

Kandie won this year’s Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in a world-leading 58:58, just six days after winning the highly competitive Kenyan cross-country title. Kimeli, who won in Prague in 2018 and 2019, turned to track racing in July and was rewarded with a 5000m PB of 13:16.61.

Others in the field with the potential for a top-three finish include Ethiopia’s two-time Delhi Half Marathon winner Andamlak Belihu, 59:28 performer Philemon Kiplimo and fellow Kenyan Abel Kipchumba.

“The pandemic has deprived these great athletes of the chance to participate in races all across the world,” said Carlo Capalbo, president of the organising committee. “We wanted to find a way of doing something spectacular for everyone. While this race is coming at what would normally be the end of the season, we hope in a way that it will be the start, a spark that gets race organisers all over the world thinking creatively about how to keep the sport alive.”

(09/03/2020) Views: 1,663 ⚡AMP
by World Athlietics

Ethiopian and Kenyan runners to renew rivalry in Prague's half marathon

The World Half Marathon records are at stake as Kenyan and Ethiopian runners take over the Prague half-marathon on Saturday with the resumption of road races after the COVID-19 disruptive season.

The organizers have assembled a strong field in both men's and women's events with the sole aim of breaking men's 58:30 and women's 1:06:01.

The star-studded half-marathon is limited to 35 of the most celebrated distance runners in the world currently.

Men and women will compete separately, running on a flat, fast oval course through Letna Park in Prague in 16.5 laps. A course and a field designed to wage an all-out assault on the current world record.

Two Kenyan women, Peres Jepchirir and Edith Chelimo, will be up against Ethiopian's world half-marathon women-only record holder Netsanet Gudeta.

However, the men's race sees the withdrawal of the 2018 Prague half-marathon champion Joan Chelimo who cited unpreparedness.

Stephen Kiprop, Kibiwott Kandie and Benard Kimeli, all from Kenya, will be aiming to break the world record of 58.01 currently being held by their compatriot Geoffrey Kamworor.

Kandie holds the fastest time of 58:58 this year when he won the RAK Half in the UAE in February.

"Assembling this field of runners turned out to be a monumental feat. And that was only the start. Ensuring their health and safety posed other challenges. But we have established a set of protocols designed to make sure that no one is compromised," said Carlo Capalbo, the president of the Runczech organizing committee in a press statement on Tuesday.

(09/03/2020) Views: 1,547 ⚡AMP

The Prague half-marathon will be holding an elite-only event and announces world record attempt

Early this Saturday something very fast will be happening in the Czech capital of Prague.

RunCzech, organizer of the Volkswagen Prague Marathon and other top-class events, will be holding an elite-only half-marathon in Letná Park called the Prague 21.1 KM – Ready for the Restart.  The objective?  Get at least one man to break 58:30 and one woman to break the women-only world record of 1:06:11 on the special 16.5-lap course which will be closed to the public.

“The pandemic has deprived these great athletes of the chance to participate in races all across the world,” said RunCzech president Carlo Capalbo through a statement.  “It has deprived us from witnessing some of the great performances that we’re accustomed to seeing.  We wanted to find a way of doing something spectacular for everyone.”

Spectacular, indeed.  Capalbo’s team has assembled a superb field of nine women and 18 men who will have the benefit of strong pacemaking.  Five women on the entry last have broken 1:06:00 for the half-marathon, led by Kenyans Joan Chelimo, Peres Jepchirchir, and Edith Chelimo.  Ethiopians Senbere Teferi and Netsanet Gudeta have also broken 66 minutes (see full athlete list below).  On the men’s side, nine men have broke 60:00 led by Kenyans Stephen Kiprop, Kibiwott Kandie, and Benard Kimeli (see full list below).

Interestingly, the fastest times ever run on Czech soil are 58:47 by Ethiopia’s Atsedu Tsegay in Prague in 2012, and 64:52 by Kenya’s Joyciline Jepkosgei in Prague in 2017.  Jepkosgei’s time was achieved in a mixed-gender race.  The fastest times in the world this year are 58:58 by Kibiwott Kandie and 1:04:31 by Yeshaneh Ababel of Ethiopia.  Both marks were achieved at the RAK Half in the UAE on February 21.

Saturday’s event will also be a demonstration project for adidas, a long-time partner of RunCzech.  All of the athletes will be wearing the World Athletics-approved adizero adios Pro (39mm sole thickness) racing shoe.  The shoe, which sells in the United States for $200 a pair, has an ultra lightweight mesh upper, LightStrike Pro foam, a carbon fiber heel plate, and five carbon-infused “energy rods” in the forefoot which, the company says, were “inspired by the bone structure of the foot.”  The shoe weights 7.9 ounces (224 grams).

“adidas has 70 years experience of working with elite athletes on shoes designed to win races,” said adidas Running’s design vice-president Sam Handy through a statement.  “Our expertise has continually evolved as athletes and sports science has progressed.  This shoe is our pinnacle race product, representing all those decades of dedication, experience and collaboration.”

Capalbo is not only hoping for fast times, but is also trying to inject some life into road running which has been hit hard by the pandemic.  While in-stadium athletics is already back to a high level, most road races have had to switch to “virtual” status, where athletes run on their own, or have simply been cancelled.  Capalbo wants to show what is possible, even during a pandemic.  Saturday’s event will be held in compliance with current Czech regulations for fighting COVID-19.

“While this race is coming at what would normally be the end of the (RunCzech) season we hope in a way that it will be the start, a spark, that gets race organizers all over the world thinking creatively about how to keep the sport alive.”

The Prague 21.1 KM – Ready for the Restart will be broadcast live on ÄŒT Sport, and there will be an international live stream with English language commentary.

(09/01/2020) Views: 1,724 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

Napoli City Half Marathon to restart in February

The countdown for the Napoli City Half Marathon has started. The registrations are officially open for the 8th edition of the race, scheduled for February 28, 2021.

Napoli Running, a project of RunCzech, is ready to restart and with all health and safety measures advised by the Italian Institutions and FIDAL (the Italian Federation of Athletic), will organize an event which organizers call a “must” in the international calendar of road running.

The success of the 2020 edition, the last international mass participation event which took place in Europe before the lockdown, is still in the minds of the 7,000 runners, including 1500 visitors from 61 countries around the world.

The event has an economic impact on the Naples metropolitan area of approximately 4 million euro (4.7m USD), and is seen by more than 500 million viewers worldwide.

The Napoli City Half Marathon 2020 celebrated remarkable performances by the winners, Kenyan Henry Rono (RunCzech Racing) in 1:00:04 (a course record) and the compatriot Viola Cheptoo in 1:06:47, second fastest performance of all time on Italian soil.

2021’s route will start from Viale Kennedy and the Mostra d’Oltremare, and will lead the runners through the most fascinating areas of the city, running along the coast for more than 15km.

Organizers promise compliance with all the health and safety measures advised by the Italian authorities to ensure a safe event.

(08/27/2020) Views: 1,528 ⚡AMP

RunCzech re-opens Prague. Running festival at the airport.

Runners flowed into the check in, showed their passports, got their start numbers, passed the security and boarded through the gate D6.

Then the airport shuttle busses took them to the runway, but instead of entering the plane, they lined up at the start of a 5km Runway Run. 

2,674 runners in total, were lucky enough to secure their places in this sold out once-in-a-lifetime event. They were split into different categories to abide by the public and health safety regulations.

Categories included an astonishing Sunset Run on Saturday evening, or a sunny Breakfast Run on Sunday morning, with many of them joining 3km dm Family Run distance.

Basically, runners were running with planes taking-off or landing over their heads.  To spice up the excitement, RunCzech and the Czech Athletic Federation organized an Elite Run with a live broadcast on Czech National TV.

Four Czech elite men and four women created mixed gender relays in an exhibition race of 500-1000-500-1000 meters on the runway. 

Afterward, Runners and their families continued to the Runway Park where they could see exhibited aircraft, closely examine airport special equipment, and spend the day with an entertaining and educational program for the whole family. 

The RunCzech organizing team, after recently being forced to cancel the Volkswagen Prague Marathon, was as equally excited as the runners.

“As the World awakens from bearing scars of the pandemic, this event shows us that runners are eager to come back to their passion, which is manifesting signals of reopening.

Our humble attempt is to demonstrate that the country is safe and competent, that the Czech Republic is running, which is a true physical verification of showing what a place can do and how it works. We simply hope to contribute to the Czech Republic’s post-pandemic recovery strategy,” summarizes Carlo Capalbo, the founder of RunCzech. 

Next, RunCzech has another surprise for a unique place to run, inside the historical cellars of the original Pilsen brewery on August 1.

(07/20/2020) Views: 1,302 ⚡AMP

Postponed Prague Marathon Now Cancelled

The 2020 Volkswagen Prague Marathon, which had been postponed from May 3, to October 11 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has now been cancelled. In addition two other important road races in Prague which are also organized by the Czech Republic’s most important race organizer RunCzech, the Sportisimo Prague International Half-Marathon and Birell Grand Prix, have also been cancelled. All three events had received World Athletics Gold Label status.

“We were ready with our races,” wrote RunCzech president Carlo Capalbo in an open letter to the runners and other stakeholders involved in his organization’s events. “Everyone was in place. Our team. Our volunteers. Our partners and suppliers. Everything was ordered and most of it in our warehouse. And then? COVID.”

Capalbo continued: “We hoped against hope that autumn would be better. But it was not to be.”

Large sporting events will not be permitted in the center of Prague, Capalbo explained, forcing the cancellations. He said that all registered runners will have the option to transfer their entries to the 2021 or 2022 editions of these events for no additional cost.

“The decision taken is extremely difficult for us,” Capalbo added. “But we take comfort knowing that Czech government officials had the foresight and the wisdom to take action designed to keep us safe. We take comfort knowing that our health care professionals were tireless and brilliant in helping to treat the virus. We take comfort knowing that when it hurts this bad we must be doing something good. And we take comfort knowing that we will run again.”

The Sportisimo Prague International Half-Marathon, part of the international SuperHalfs race series, was originally scheduled for Saturday, March 28, but was then postponed until Sunday, September 6. The Birell Grand Prix, a 10-K with a women’s 5-K, was always scheduled for Saturday, September 5. Collectively, these events had 26,192 finishers in 2019, according to the Race Results Weekly Athletes Performance Database. The half-marathon was the largest event with 10,517 finishers.

Capalbo emphasized that RunCzech’s other races outside of Prague were still scheduled to happen on the revised schedule his organization issued earlier this year: the Mattoni Olomouc Half-Marathon (August 30), Mattoni Ústí Half-Marathon (September 19), Mattoni Karlovy Vary Half-Marathon (October 24), and Mattoni České Budějovice Half-Marathon (October 31).

These cancellations in Prague follow closely the cancellations of three of the running industry’s most important events: the Boston Marathon (postponed from April 20, to September 14, before being cancelled), the BMW Berlin Marathon (September 27) and the TCS New York City Marathon (November 1). Dozens of other fall road races have also been cancelled across the Americas, Europe and Japan including large and important events like the Great North Run Half-Marathon in England, Buenos Aires Marathon in Argentina, the Dam tot Damloop 10 Mile in the Netherlands, the Paris-Versailles 16-K in France, and the Osaka Marathon in Japan.

Capalbo, an Italian who has lived in the Czech Republic for decades, remains optimistic. “Very often, over the course of our 27-year history, when we’ve faced adversity, we’ve looked for inspiration from our guiding spirit, Emil Zatopek,” Capalbo wrote. “A man who famously said that when you feel like you can’t go on, ‘go faster.'”

(07/12/2020) Views: 1,724 ⚡AMP
by Let's Run

2020 Postponed Prague Marathon Now Cancelled

The 2020 Volkswagen Prague Marathon, which had been postponed from May 3, to October 11 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has now been cancelled. In addition two other important road races in Prague which are also organized by the Czech Republic's most important race organizer RunCzech, the Sportisimo Prague International Half-Marathon and Birell Grand Prix, have also been cancelled. All three events had received World Athletics Gold Label status.

"We were ready with our races," wrote RunCzech president Carlo Capalbo in an open letter to the runners and other stakeholders involved in his organization's events. "Everyone was in place. Our team. Our volunteers. Our partners and suppliers. Everything was ordered and most of it in our warehouse. And then? COVID."

Capalbo continued: "We hoped against hope that autumn would be better. But it was not to be."

Large sporting events will not be permitted in the center of Prague, Capalbo explained, forcing the cancellations. He said that all registered runners will have the option to transfer their entries to the 2021 or 2022 editions of these events for no additional cost.

"The decision taken is extremely difficult for us," Capalbo added. "But we take comfort knowing that Czech government officials had the foresight and the wisdom to take action designed to keep us safe. We take comfort knowing that our health care professionals were tireless and brilliant in helping to treat the virus. We take comfort knowing that when it hurts this bad we must be doing something good. And we take comfort knowing that we will run again."

The Sportisimo Prague International Half-Marathon, part of the international SuperHalfs race series, was originally scheduled for Saturday, March 28, but was then postponed until Sunday, September 6. The Birell Grand Prix, a 10-K with a women's 5-K, was always scheduled for Saturday, September 5. Collectively, these events had 26,192 finishers in 2019, according to the Race Results Weekly Athletes Performance Database. The half-marathon was the largest event with 10,517 finishers.

Capalbo emphasized that RunCzech's other races outside of Prague were still scheduled to happen on the revised schedule his organization issued earlier this year: the Mattoni Olomouc Half-Marathon (August 30), Mattoni Ústí Half-Marathon (September 19), Mattoni Karlovy Vary Half-Marathon (October 24), and Mattoni Ceské Budejovice Half-Marathon (October 31).

These cancellations in Prague follow closely the cancellations of three of the running industry's most important events: the Boston Marathon (postponed from April 20, to September 14, before being cancelled), the BMW Berlin Marathon (September 27) and the TCS New York City Marathon (November 1). Dozens of other fall road races have also been cancelled across the Americas, Europe and Japan including large and important events like the Great North Run Half-Marathon in England, Buenos Aires Marathon in Argentina, the Dam tot Damloop 10 Mile in the Netherlands, the Paris-Versailles 16-K in France, and the Osaka Marathon in Japan.

Capalbo, an Italian who has lived in the Czech Republic for decades, remains optimistic. "Very often, over the course of our 27-year history, when we've faced adversity, we've looked for inspiration from our guiding spirit, Emil Zatopek," Capalbo wrote. "A man who famously said that when you feel like you can't go on, 'go faster.'"

(07/01/2020) Views: 1,623 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

The Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon has confirmed their new date - September 6, 2020

This was just released by Run Czech:  "Following restrictive measures imposed by the Czech Government due to the spreading of coronavirus in the country and worldwide RunCzech has announced that the Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon (which is also a part of SuperHalfs running series) will not happen on 28 March 2020 as planned. The health of the participants is a priority now. 

In recent days, RunCzech management has been intensively discussing an alternative date of the race with everybody involved in the organisation of the race – City Hall of Prague, international organizations, television, the Czech Athletic Federation and further institutions, and have commonly found a new date replacing the March event. Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon 2020 is now scheduled to take place on Sunday morning, 6 September 2020. The time and the place of the start will be confirmed.

All runners registered for the race do not have to report or confirm their participation in the postponed race. All registrations will be automatically transferred to a new date (6 September 2020) together with the additional services such as t-shirts or medal engravings.

Those registered runners who may not be able to participate in the postponed race this year can change their valid entry ownership to another person or to defer their entry to the 2021 Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon (scheduled for 27 March 2021). Both options are possible to do without any additional cost until the end of July. 

Runners registered in SuperHalfs running series will receive additional communication.

Registered participants will receive further information and more details about the race by e-mail in the upcoming two weeks.

(03/25/2020) Views: 1,445 ⚡AMP
by Race organizers

Prague Half Marathon also postponed

RunCzech running events has postponed Prague Half Marathon after the Czech government decided to ban until further notice all cultural, sporting and social events with participation over 100 people.

This first RunCzech event of 2020 organized in the Czech Republic, the Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon was scheduled for Saturday, 28 March. The expected participation was 11,500 runners plus thousands of volunteers and fans. After long internal debates, it was decided to postpone the race to another date later this year. The new date will be announced as soon as possible on the official website www.runczech.com and other RunCzech channels.

“Due to recent circumstances around the world and in the Czech Republic, to limit the spreading is the appropriate effort taken. Health is always the priority. I thank to my colleagues, volunteers and everyone involved in the race preparation for their enthusiasm. Mainly enormous thanks go to all the runners. I wish we can meet soon” said RunCzech race director Václav SkÅ™ivánek. The organizers have been preparing the race since last year’s June, when the registrations opened.

Runners that are registered for the race do not have to report anywhere or confirm their participation in the postponed race – all start numbers together with the additional services like T-shirt or medal engraving will be automatically transferred to the new date.

The next RunCzech race – Volkswagen Prague Marathon – remains as it was scheduled for May 3. RunCzech will provide updates latest on 31 March.

The new date of the Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon 2020 will be announced on www.runczech.com, on social media and all registered runners will be notified by e-mail.

(03/11/2020) Views: 1,374 ⚡AMP
by Tom Craggs

Great Britain’s Jess Piasecki and Germany’s Hendrik Pfeiffer won the elite races at the Mattoni Usti nad Labem Half Marathon on Saturday

At the fifteenth kilometer mark Jess Piasecki and her Ukrainian rival Daria Mykhailova - who was contesting her third EuroHeroes Challenge race of the season - had broken away from the challengers and in the end victory went to Piasecki in 1:11:34, enhancing her personal best by two seconds. 

“The time is great, though I had wanted to do it a bit faster. I mainly concentrated on beating Daria. The finish was pretty tough. It was a good performance because I’m training for the Frankfurt marathon,” said Piasecki.

Mykhailova had to settle for second but she had more than good reason to be pleased with her efforts. Her time of 1:11:36 was nine seconds better than her personal best to date and it also meant she emerged as the overall winner of the EuroHeroes Challenge. 

Experiencing difficulties on the course, the anticipated series winner Lilia Fisikovici from Moldova only managed sixth place (1:14:06) and was thus toppled off her throne.

In the men’s race, Pfeiffer ran aggressively in the early stages despite the warm conditions on offer and ran a solo race, winning in 63:17 from Poland’s Marcin Chabowski (63:49) and Ukraine’s Roman Romanenko (63:51).

“I found the race really tough because it was so hot on the course. I ran really well during the first half, but the second half was a lot more up and down. By the tenth kilometer however I knew I was going for a personal best,” he said.

Not only did Pfeiffer break his lifetime best by 43 seconds, his time was also the fastest by a European in Usti nad Labem Half Marathon race history, bettering the mark of 64:06 held by Ukraine’s Dmytro Lashyn.

A total of 3539 runners took part in this year’s Usti nad Labem Half Marathon. A further 2556 parents and children also took part in the dm family run, with several dozen more competing in the Spolchemie Handbike Cup. 

The RunCzech race series in the Czech Republic will close with the Mattoni Liberec Nature Run, a trail race entering its second year which is held on 5 October. 

The European Athletics Quality Road Race standards act as an assurance for road runners throughout Europe. They distinguish between races that respect the standards and those that haven’t sought certification or assessment. They form the foundation of Running for All, a strong recognizable brand for running activities throughout Europe.

(09/23/2019) Views: 2,035 ⚡AMP

Yassine Rachik and Lilia Fisikovici win Olomouc Half Marathon

Italy’s Yassine Rachik and Lilia Fisikovici of Moldova continued their winning ways in the RunCzech EuroHeroes Challenge series, taking the titles at Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon in the Czech Republic.

In hot conditions, with the temperature around 30°C at the start of the race at 7pm local time, Rachik clocked 64:26 and Fisikovici 73:32 for clear victories.

That makes it three wins from three races for the pair in the EuroHeroes series, following their success in Karlovy Vary in May and Ceské Budejovice at the beginning of this month.

The four-race series was launched in 2018 with the support of European Athletics and aims to highlight new sporting heroes from the continent, as athletes claim points for their performances and can compete for a separate EuroHeroes ranking and prize structure.

Ukraine’s Olha Kotovska was second in 74:35 and her compatriot Darya Mykhailova was third in 74:57. Matea Parlov finished fourth in 75:18.

In the men’s race, London Marathon ninth-placer Rachik solo ran his way to success, with Ukraine’s Roman Romanenko securing second in 66:01 and Ireland’s Paul Pollock placing third in 66:12.

The top Czech runners were Vít Pavlišta in fifth with 68:09 and Marcela Joglová in ninth with 77:55.

“It was hard to run alone,” said Rachik, “and it wasn’t easy to fight with that heat, too.”

A total of 10,078 runners took part in the Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon events, with 6481 in the main race and 3597 in the family run.

The fourth and final event in this year’s EuroHeroes Challenge will be the Mattoni Ústí nad Labem Half Marathon, held on September 21.

(06/23/2019) Views: 1,974 ⚡AMP

Sara Hall will headline the Mattoni Usti nad Labem Half Marathon on September 15

Sara Hall and Jared Ward will run the Mattoni Usti nad Labem Half Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label road race. The two Americans add to an increasing interest and participation from some of the finest U.S. distance runners in recent RunCzech events. At the 2017 Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon the organizers were proud to host the two time Olympic medalist, Galen Rupp and the very popular and talented Jordan Hasay, both of whom were preparing for the Boston Marathon. In Prague Hasay achieved a significant personal best of 1:07:55 which prepared her for a big marathon breakthrough in Boston 16 days later. Although Rupp ran a very respectable 1:01:59 he was disappointed that foot problems kept him from being more competitive. (09/04/2018) Views: 2,004 ⚡AMP

Eva Vrabcova-Nyvltova is the favorite to win the Karlovy Vary Half Marathon

The sixth Mattoni Karlovy Vary Half Marathon has drawn top runners from all over Europe to the spa town. Designed to promote the development of athletics on the Old Continent, new RunCzech initiative (in cooperation with European Athletics) EuroHeroes will get underway in Karlovy Vary. Eva Vrabcová-Nývltová is the hot favorite to win the women’s race. 

She smashed the longstanding Czech half marathon record with her 1:11:01 performance at this year’s Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon. “Competing at the European Championships is my main focus for me this year, but I’m also really looking forward to running in Karlovy Vary," says Eva, who is expected to launch an assault on the Czech event record of 1:17:31 held by Ivana Sekyrová since 2013. She’s likely to face high calibre competition from Lithuanian Olympian Vaida Zusinaite.

Sekyrová will also be keen to leave her mark as will Petra Kamínková from Olomouc who has claimed victory among the Czech women for the past three years in a row. "I want to soak up the atmosphere and give it my best." Six men with personal bests under 1:04 will be on the start line. Young Spanish talent Houssam Benabbou, who recently ran a new personal best of 1:03:35, is expected to deliver a high calibre performance.  EuroHeroes is a new initiative by RunCzech to celebrate European running stars and promote active lifestyles in Europe. The initiative aims to find new sporting heroes and motivate the public to exercise.

(05/17/2018) Views: 2,084 ⚡AMP

Galen Rupp smashed his PR and won the Prague Marathon by nearly a minute clocking 2:06:07

American’s Galen Rupp did as promised and the weather did not get in his way at the 24th Annual Volkswagen Prague Marathon Sunday morning May 6.  

He ran an even pace the whole way reaching the half way point in 1:03:02.  Ethiopian’s Sisay Lemma stayed close through 30k but Galen took control and clocked 1:03:05 for his second half finishing in 1:06:07.  

This smashed his previous best by three minutes and 13 seconds. This makes Galen the third fastest American ever and his time was only 29 seconds off the official American Record held by Khalid Khannouchi.  

Ryan Hall’s 2:04:58 clocked in Boston is not considered official since Boston is a point-to-point course.  Galen has now finished five marathons setting a PR each time. The Prague Marathon kicked off at 9am local time from the Old Town Square.  

Sisay finished second clocking 2:07:02.  Thousands of runners from all over the world enjoyed the perfect weather and the beautiful course.   

(05/06/2018) Views: 5,350 ⚡AMP
by Bob Anderson

Kigen, and Kandie of Kenya wiill Headline Napoli City Half Marathon

Nobert Kigen and Felix Kandie of Kenya headline a men’s pro field aiming for a sub-60 minute performance at the fifth Napoli City Half Marathon in Naples, Italy. February 4 will mark the fifth edition of the race and the second under the direction of Carlo Capalbo, a native of Napoli who serves as chairman of the IAAF Road Running Commission, and the president of the RunCzech Organization. Capalbo has made it his personal mission to bring a world-class running event to his hometown. (01/30/2018) Views: 1,736 ⚡AMP

RunCzech Runing League Is On The Move

“23 years ago, sitting in a Prague pub, my friends and I first expressed thoughts about setting up a marathon here. I couldn’t possibly have know then how such a small event could flourish,” stated Carlo Capalbo, president of RunCzech. 82,883 Runners took part in RunCzech Running League races in 2017. At these events four Czech records, nine course records and five world records were set. “When I see more and more Runners finish, I think to myself, this is only the beginning,” says Carlos. (12/20/2017) Views: 1,620 ⚡AMP