The Karlovy Vary Region or Carlsbad Region is an administrative unit of the Czech Republic, located in the westernmost part of its historical region of Bohemia. It is named after its capital Karlovy Vary. The region is world-famous for its spas, including Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázně.
The Prague Marathon is held in the city of Prague in the Czech Republic each May. It was founded in 1995 and has grown to become a significant marathon event, being awarded IAAF Gold Label status. According to media it is the world's most international marathon, with two-thirds of runners coming from 55 different countries. Prague's marathon course is also the seventh-fastest and has been voted one of the most beautiful in the world.
The Houston Marathon is an annual marathon held every January in Houston, Texas. With thousands of runners and spectators, it is the largest single day sporting event in the city. It is run concurrently with a half marathon and a 5 km race. The 2007 race included the first-ever satellite running of the event, run simultaneously in Fallujah, Iraq.
The Rotterdam Marathon, currently branded NN Rotterdam Marathon, is an annual marathon that has been held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands since 1981. It has been held in April every year since the third edition in 1984, and attracts many top athletes. It has also been ranked as one of the top 10 marathons in the world by Runner's World magazine. The event is the most popular marathon in the Netherlands, followed by the marathons of Amsterdam and Eindhoven.
The 2010 FIBA World Championship for Women, the 16th edition of FIBA's premier tournament for women's national basketball teams, was held from September 23 to October 3, 2010 in the Czech Republic. Three cities, Ostrava, Brno and Karlovy Vary, hosted games. Four countries initially bid for the event but Australia, France and Latvia withdrew during the bidding process.
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 58:23 was set by Zersenay Tadese in 2010, a world record for the half marathon distance, at the time. 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.
The CPC Loop Den Haag is an annual half marathon competition held in the Hague, Netherlands, every mid-March.
The Prague Half Marathon is an annual half marathon road running event which takes place in Spring on the city streets of Prague, Czech Republic. Known as the Hervis Prague Half Marathon for sponsorship reasons, it holds IAAF Gold Label Road Race status, making it the foremost race of its type in the country. It is managed by the same organisation that holds the Prague Marathon in May.
The Roma-Ostia Half Marathon is an annual half marathon road running event which takes place in early March in Rome, Italy. The course begins in the EUR district of the city and follows a direct south-easterly route to the finish point near the beaches of Ostia. It is Italy's most popular half marathon, with a record 12,000 entries and 9,485 finishers in 2011.
The Auray-Vannes Half Marathon is an annual road running competition over the half marathon distance (21.097 km) which takes place in early September in Brittany, France. The point-to-point course begins in the commune of Auray and finishes in the Stade de Kercado in nearby Vannes. Nearly 5000 people participated in the event in 2011. A record 6378 runners finished the half marathon in 1999.
The Ústí nad Labem Half Marathon is an annual half marathon race which takes place in September in Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic. Known as the Mattoni Ústí Half Marathon, it is a part of RunCzech running circuit. The event holds IAAF Gold Label Road Race status.
The Olomouc Half Marathon is an annual half marathon race which takes place in June in Olomouc, Czech Republic. Known as the Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon, it is a part of RunCzech running circuit. In 2013, it was awarded IAAF Silver Label Road Race status.
The French Riviera Marathon is a marathon held annually along the south east coast of France, between the cities of Nice and Cannes. The event was first held in 2008, when the race achieved its full capacity of 10,000 runners, setting a new world record attendance for an event on its debut. Although the race has only been competed since 2008, it trails only the Paris Marathon in terms of participation within France. In 2013, it was listed as an IAAF Bronze Label Road Race for the first time, a status it retained in 2014.
The České Budějovice Half Marathon is an annual half marathon race which takes place in early June in České Budějovice, Czech Republic. Known as the Mattoni České Budějovice Half Marathon, it is a part of RunCzech running circuit. The race has IAAF Gold Label Road Race status.
The Copenhagen Half Marathon is an annual half marathon road running event which takes place in September on the city streets of Copenhagen, Denmark. It held the IAAF Silver Label Road Race status in 2016 and the IAAF Gold Label Road Race in 2017, making it the foremost race of its type in the country. The event was launched after the success holding of the 2014 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in the city. The course was slightly modified for the newly created annual event, with the race starting and finishing near Parken Stadium.
The 15K run is a long distance foot race. It is a rarely held race that is not recognized as an Olympic event. The world best for men is held by Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda who ran a time of 41:05 at the Seven Hills Race in Nijmegen, The Netherlands. The women's world best is held by Joyciline Jepkosgei of Kenya who ran a time of 45:37+ in Prague, Czech Republic.
Joyciline Jepkosgei is a Kenyan female long-distance runner who competes over distances from 10,000 metres to the half marathon. She is the half marathon world record holder with her personal best of 64:51 minutes and additionally the record holder in the 10k with 29:43 minutes. She was a bronze medallist over 10,000 m at the African Championships in Athletics in 2016. Kenya’s Joyciline Jepkosgei ran a pending world record for the half marathon of 1:04:52 at the Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon in April 2017, becoming the first woman ever to break 65 minutes. In addition, she also unofficially broke the IAAF-ratified records for 10K, 15K and 20K along the way, breaking a total of 4 world records in a single event. She also became the first Kenyan ever to break six world records in six months.
