The 2024 World Athletics Label Road Races are road running competitions scheduled for 2024 that have met the standard for World Athletics to include the race in its Label Road Races program. [1] Like the Diamond League for track and field, the list represents the highest level international road racing circuit. The list contained 303 races, over 60 more than in 2023, and included 16 Platinum Label, 45 Gold Label, 65 Elite Label, and 177 Label races. [2]
The mile run is a middle-distance foot race.
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 an Elite Label Road Race by World Athletics. Over 40,000 participants take part in the races each year.
The Cardiff Half Marathon is an annual half marathon race held in the Welsh capital city of Cardiff, taking place in October. The event was established in 2003, initially alongside the Cardiff Marathon, however, due to the increasing popularity of the Half Marathon, the Marathon distance was dropped after 2006. The race was originally organised by the children’s charity Barnardo’s. Now organised by Run 4 Wales, the race has grown to accommodate up to 27,500 runners.
The Riga Marathon is an annual road marathon held in Riga, Latvia, since 1991. A flat, single-lap marathon course in the Baltics' largest city. The marathon course has been measured and certified by AIMS, the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races and is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athletics. All courses are traffic-free. Rimi Riga Marathon is one of the fastest-growing marathons in Northern Europe. In 2019, there were 25 659 participants over five different distances from 82 countries.
The Tallinn Marathon is an annual road marathon, held in Tallinn, Estonia. It is held in September and is the biggest annual marathon in Estonia. Both the marathon and the half marathon held the day before are categorized as Elite Label Road Races by World Athletics.
EDP Lisbon Half Marathon is an annual international half marathon competition which is contested every March in Lisbon, Portugal. It carries IAAF Gold Label Road Race status. The men's course record of 57:31 was set by Jacob Kiplimo in 2021, which was the world record for the half marathon distance until 2024. Kenyan runners have been very successful in the competition, accounting for over half of the total winners, with Tegla Loroupe taking the honours in the women's race on six separate occasions. The Lisbon Half Marathon is not to be confused with Luso Portugal Half Marathon, another prominent half marathon race which is also held in Lisbon in October.
World Athletics Label Road Races are races that World Athletics designates as 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 seven World Marathon Majors. Platinium Label races have the strictest requirements, followed by Gold, then Elite, and general Label Races. All categories require what the World Athletics describes as an international elite field, that requires at least five nations for the highest labels to be represented by runners with times faster than the World Athletics's guidelines. Additionally, the race course must be closed to vehicular traffic, and measured to the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) standard, with full electronic timing used to generate the results.
Fatuma Sado Dergo is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who competes in marathon races. She has a personal best of 2:26:09 hours and has won marathons in Hamburg, Los Angeles and Xiamen.
The Valencia Half Marathon is an annual half marathon road running event held in Valencia, Spain, since 1988. It is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athletics. The race is organised by the Valencian sports club SD Correcaminos, which also organises the annual Valencia Marathon.
The Sydney Marathon is a marathon held annually in Sydney, Australia each September. The event was first held on the 30th of April 2000 and called The Host City Marathon as a test event for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, and has continued every year since, as a legacy of the 2000 Summer Olympics. The marathon is categorized as a Platinum Label Road Race by World Athletics, and from 2025, as part of the World Marathon Majors
Sifan Hassan is a Dutch middle- and long-distance runner. She is most recognized for her versatility in running championship and world-leading performances in widely disparate distances. She completed an unprecedented triple at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, winning gold medals in both the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres and a bronze medal for the 1,500 metres. Hassan is the only athlete in Olympic history to win medals across a middle-distance event and both long-distance races in a single Games. She is only the second of three women to complete an Olympic distance double. At the Paris 2024 Olympics, Hassan secured a bronze medal in both the women's 5,000 m and 10,000 m events and gold in the women's marathon, becoming the only woman to win the Olympic gold medal in the 5,000 metres, 10,000 metres and Marathon races.
Selemon Barega Shirtaga is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He won the gold medal in the 10,000 metres at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, silver for the 5,000 metres at the 2019 World Championships in Doha and bronze in the 10,000 metres at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. Selemon is a two-time 3,000 metres World Indoor Championship medallist, taking silver in 2018, and a gold in 2022.
The Valencia Marathon is an annual marathon road running event hosted by Valencia, Spain, since 1981. It is categorized as a Platinum Label Road Race by World Athletics. The race is organised by the Valencian sports club SD Correcaminos, which also organises the annual Valencia Half Marathon.
The Guangzhou Marathon is an annual marathon race held in December in the city of Guangzhou, China, since 2012. The marathon is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athletics.
The Doha Marathon is an annual road-based marathon hosted by Doha, Qatar, since 2013. The marathon is a World Athletics Elite Label Road Race. During the race weekend, a half marathon, a 10K race, and a 5K race are also offered.
The 2023 World Athletics Label Road Races are road running competitions scheduled for 2023 that have met a certain standard for World Athletics to include the race in its Label Road Races program. The list of races so labelled for the 2023 calendar year was released on 4 November 2022. The list contained 238 races, nearly 20 more than in 2022, and included 14 Platinum Label, 38 Gold Label, 66 Elite Label, and 120 Label races. World Athletics stated that the additional funding afforded by the Label Road Races program would allow the Athletics Integrity Unit to improve the system it uses to detect drug use in competitions.
The 2024 Berlin Marathon was the 50th edition of the annual marathon race in Berlin, held on Sunday, September 29, 2024. A Platinum Label marathon, it was the fourth of six World Marathon Majors events scheduled for 2024. A total of 54,280 runners completed the marathon making it the largest marathon in the world at that time. This record was later surpassed at the 2024 New York City Marathon which had 55,646 finishers.
