The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of 42.195 kilometres, usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair divisions. More than 800 marathons are held throughout the world each year, with the vast majority of competitors being recreational athletes, as larger marathons can have tens of thousands of participants.
The World Marathon Majors (WMM) is a championship-style competition for marathon runners that started in 2006. A points-based competition founded on six major marathon races recognised as the most high-profile on the calendar, the series comprises annual races for the cities of Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York. In addition, each edition of the series recognises and includes the results of the major global championship marathon held in that year, usually on a one-off lapped course. These races are the biennial World Athletics Championships Marathon, and the quadrennial Olympic Games Marathon.
The Ottawa Race Weekend is an annual weekend of road running events held the last weekend of May in the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The two-day running event includes seven races, including the Ottawa Marathon, all of which start and end at Ottawa City Hall. The marathon was first held in 1975, and is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athletics. Over 40,000 participants take part in the races each year.
The Stockholm Marathon, known as the adidasStockholm Marathon for sponsorship reasons, is an annual marathon arranged in Stockholm, Sweden, since 1979. It serves as the Swedish marathon championship race. At the 2009 Stockholm Marathon more than 18,500 participants were registered. The marathon is categorized as a Bronze Label Road Race by World Athletics.
The Tokyo Marathon is an annual marathon sporting event in Tokyo, the capital of Japan. It is an World Athletics Platinum Label marathon and one of the six World Marathon Majors. The latest edition of the race took place on 1 March 2020. It is sponsored by Tokyo Metro.
World Athletics Label Road Races are races that the World Athletics designates as one of the "leading road races around the world." The classification was first introduced for the 2008 running season, upon the suggestion of the IAAF Road Running Commission. The races are split into three categories: marathons, half marathons and other. Within the "other" category are traditional road race distances, over which World Athletics world records can be set, along with some "Classical races", which span unusual distances. The Labels are considered a prestigious award by race organisers, and include the six World Marathon Majors.
The Kyiv Half Marathon is an annual road running event over the half marathon distance which is held in April on the streets of Kyiv, Ukraine since 2011. In 2015 Kyiv half marathon became a full member of the AIMS. It carries World Athletics Silver Label Road Race status. The race is part of the Run Ukraine Running League, an annual series of races held in Ukrainian cities.
The 2008 IAAF Road Race Label Events were the inaugural edition of the global series of road running competitions given Label status by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). All five World Marathon Majors had Gold Label status. The races were mostly in North America, Western Europe, and East Asia. It was the first year that the IAAF had provided the race designation. The series included a total of 49 road races, 12 Gold and 37 Silver Label status. In terms of distance, 32 races were marathons, 8 were half marathons, 6 were 10K runs, and 3 were held over other distances.
The 2019 IAAF Road Race Label Events are the twelfth edition of the global series of road running competitions given Label status by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). The series included a total of 138 road races: 64 Gold Label, 25 Silver Label and 49 Bronze Label. In terms of distance, 88 races were marathons, 28 were half marathons, 15 were 10K runs, and 7 were held over other distances. The series included all six World Marathon Majors in the Gold category.
The 2015 IAAF Road Race Label Events were the eighth edition of the global series of road running competitions given Label status by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). All six World Marathon Majors had Gold Label status. The series included a total of 88 road races: 43 Gold, 27 Silver and 18 Bronze. In terms of distance, 55 races were marathons, 18 were half marathons, 10 were 10K runs, and 5 were held over other distances.
The 2012 IAAF Road Race Label Events were the fifth edition of the global series of road running competitions given Label status by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). All five World Marathon Majors had Gold Label status. The series included a total of 71 road races: 35 Gold, 21 Silver and 15 Bronze. In terms of distance, 44 races were marathons, 14 were half marathons, 10 were 10K runs, and 4 were held over other distances.
The 2020 UCI World Tour was a series of races that was scheduled to include thirty-six road cycling events throughout the 2020 cycling season. However, some of races were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tour started with the opening stage of the Tour Down Under on 21 January, and concluded with the final stage of the Vuelta a España on 8 November.
In 2020, the main athletic events were scheduled to be the 2020 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, Japan, the 2020 World Athletics Indoor Championships held in Nanjing, China and the 2020 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships held in Gdynia, Poland. All three were rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic with the 2020 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships being the only event still held in 2020.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused the most significant disruption to the worldwide sporting calendar since World War II. Across the world and to varying degrees, sports events have been cancelled or postponed. The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo were rescheduled to 2021. At the time, spectators had no games to watch and players no games to play. Only a few countries and territories, such as Hong Kong, Turkmenistan, Belarus, and Nicaragua, continued professional sporting matches as planned.
The 2020 London Marathon was the 40th running of the annual marathon race in London, United Kingdom, which took place on 4 October 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the race was postponed from 26 April and only allowed elite participants; the mass participation event was cancelled. The event used a different course from usual, consisting of multiple laps around St James's Park.
The 2021 New York City Marathon, the 50th running of that city's premier long-distance race, was held on November 7, 2021. Around 30,000 people ran in the event, of whom 25,020 finished. The race followed its traditional route, which passes through all five boroughs of New York City.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused disruption to motorsport across the world, mirroring its impact across all sports. Across the world and to varying degrees, events and competitions have been cancelled or postponed.
The 2021 London Marathon was the 41st running of the annual London Marathon on 3 October 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the race was postponed from April until October to maximise the chances of a mass participation event.
The Poznań Marathon is an annual road-based marathon hosted by Poznań, Poland, since 2000. It was categorized as a Bronze Label Road Race by the International Association of Athletics Federations and is a member of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races.
