Beirut Marathon

The Beirut Marathon, is an annual event that takes place in Beirut, Lebanon, first held in 2003. It is a founding member of Asian Premier Marathons, and was accredited as a Silver Label Road Race by the IAAF. Unifying members of all political groups is a central theme to the race.

Beirut Marathon
DateNovember
LocationBeirut, Lebanon
Event typeRoad
DistanceMarathon
Primary sponsorAquafina
Established2003 (2003)
Course recordsMen: 2:10:41 (2018)
Morocco Mohamed El Aaraby
Women: 2:28:38 (2017)
Bahrain Eunice Chumba
Official siteBeirut Marathon
Participants48,605 (all races) (2018)[1]
565 finishers (marathon) (2015)[2]
A group of runners in 2012
The organizer of the Beirut Marathon, May El-Khalil (5.f.r.), receives a charity cheque (2010)

The marathons are managed by the Beirut Marathon Association, a non-profit non-governmental organization registered under the Ministry of Youth and Sports in Lebanon.[3] It is sponsored by the BLOM Bank.[4]

History

The race, created by businesswoman May El-Khalil, has the theme of unity at its core.[5]

The first marathon was held on October 19, 2003 and attracted over 6,000 runners from 49 countries, and tens of thousands of Lebanese and international spectators.[6] These numbers increased every year, most notably reaching 32,000 runners from 71 countries in the 2009 BLOM Beirut Marathon, and over 47,800 runners in 2017.

The 2010 edition of the men's race was won by the pacemaker Mohamed Temam. Hussein Awadah broke the Lebanese record at the race that year, completing the distance in at a time of 2:20:31.[7]

In 2011, the course was altered to make it faster and easier to organise and the men's and women's record were both improved that year; Seada Kedir knocked over five minutes off the women's best time.[8]

The inaugural season of Asian Premier Marathons was held in 2017–18, with Beirut Marathon, Beijing Marathon, and Seoul Marathon as its founding members.

The 2019 edition of the race was cancelled due to anti-government protests, with all registrants given the option of transferring their entry to 2020 or obtaining a refund.[9]

The 2020 edition of the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, with all who had transferred their entry from 2019 given the option of obtaining a refund.[10]

Other activities

Beirut Marathon Association also organizes their annual marathon village which was sponsored by Transmed in 2017. The village comprises an expo, Souk El Akel Food Market, BLOM Bank Beirut Marathon Bib Pick-up, 15th Year Museum, Activations and many more activities by exhibitors.

Community impact

The race reaches out to all sides of the political spectrum in Lebanon.[5] The day's events also include a 3 km race for MPs of any political allegiance, as well as members of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon stationed in the country.[5]

Winners

Key:    Course record (in bold)

Ed. Date Male Winner Time[lower-alpha 1] Female Winner Time[lower-alpha 1] Rf.
1 2003.10.19  Paul Rugut (KEN) 2:17:04  Jackline Torori (KEN) 2:42:29
2 2004.10.10  Eshetu Bekele (ETH) 2:17:31  Anastasia Ndereba (KEN) 2:36:46
3 2005.11.13  Francis Kamau (KEN) 2:19:20  Jane Omoro (KEN) 2:42:19
4 2006.12.03  Moses Kemboi (KEN) 2:17:28  Eunice Korir (KEN) 2:49:25
5 2007.11.18  Tamrat Elanso (ETH) 2:19:46  Beyene Adenech (ETH) 2:41:24
6 2008.11.30  Alemayehu Shumye (ETH) 2:12:47  Alemtsehay Hailu (ETH) 2:37:20
7 2009.12.06  Mohammed Temam (ETH) 2:16:12  Mihret Tadesse (ETH) 2:42:41
8 2010.11.07  Mohammed Temam (ETH) 2:16:43  Etaferahu Tarekegne (ETH) 2:41:15
9 2011.11.27  Tariku Jufar (ETH) 2:11:14  Seada Kedir (ETH) 2:31:38
10 2012.11.11  Kedir Fekadu (ETH) 2:12:57  Seada Kedir (ETH) 2:35:08
11 2013.11.10  William Kipsang (KEN) 2:13:34  Rehima Kedir (ETH) 2:36:47
12 2014.11.09  Fikadu Girma (ETH) 2:12:26  Mulahabt Tsega (ETH) 2:29:15
13 2015.11.08  Jackson Limo (KEN) 2:11:04  Kaltoum Bouaasayriya (MAR) 2:36:05
14 2016.11.13  Edwin Kiptoo (KEN) 2:13:19  Tigist Girma (ETH) 2:32:48
15 2017.11.12  Dominic Ruto (KEN) 2:10:42  Eunice Chumba (BHR) 2:28:38
16 2018.11.11  Mohamed El Aaraby (MAR) 2:10:41  Medina Armino (ETH) 2:29:31 [11]
— 2019.11.10cancelled due to anti-government protests[9]
2020.11.08cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic[9][10]
17 2021.11.14  Toni Hanna (LBN) 2:33:03  Chirine Njeim (LBN) 3:00:18

Notes
  1. h:m:s

References
  1. "Beirut Marathon Association". Archived from the original on 7 October 2020.
  2. "Rita Wehbeh's Race Results". Archived from the original on 29 October 2020.
  3. "About BMA - Marathon". Archived from the original on 2013-12-22. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  4. Brune, Adrian (February 25, 2017). "Racing to Rebuild the Middle East". Foreign Affairs. Retrieved February 26, 2017.  – via Foreign Affairs (subscription required)
  5. Butcher, Pat (2010-11-05). Ethiopians the favourites as Beirut's unifying Marathon celebrates its eighth edition. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-11-07.
  6. El-Khalil, May (16 August 2013). "Transcript of "Making peace is a marathon"". www.ted.com.
  7. Butcher, Pat (2010-11-07). Pacemaker Teman hangs on to win in Beirut. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-11-07.
  8. Course records fall in Beirut. IAAF (2011-11-27). Retrieved on 2011-11-27.
  9. Official announcement accessed on 28th January 2020
  10. "Beirut Marathon on Instagram: "Friends, with a very heavy heart we inform you that the Beirut Marathon Association has suspended all its activities until further notice…"". www.instagram.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  11. "Road round-up: Chepngetich storms through 2:19 barrier in Istanbul, Course records for el Aaraby in Beirut and Masai at Hefei | REPORT | World Athletics". Archived from the original on 2020-09-15.

33°54′08″N 35°30′12″E

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