Elite Fields Return to Athens Marathon With Race Records in Sight
International elite runners will return to the Athens Marathon. The Authentic on Sunday, November 8, giving the race its strongest shot at new records since 2023. SEGAS expects 10 men with personal bests under 2:10 and 10 women who have run under 2:30 to line up for the 43rd edition. The first wave starts in the town of Marathon at 8:30 a.m. local time (7:30 a.m. CET, 1:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern), with the finish inside Athens’ Panathenaic Stadium.
Kenya’s Edwin Kiprop Kiptoo set both the men’s event and course records at the last edition to feature an international elite field. His 2:10:34 in 2023 broke a mark that had stood for 11 years. In the women’s race, Lithuania’s Rasa Drazdauskaitė has held the event record of 2:33:51 since 2010. The women’s course record is faster still. Japan’s Mizuki Noguchi ran 2:26:20 to win Olympic gold on the route in 2004.
Greece’s leading marathoners will line up alongside the international field, with a chance to use the faster early pace on a course that climbs through Pikermi and Pallini before descending into Athens. SEGAS said the international elite entries would be announced separately.
Athens holds World Athletics Elite Label status this year. SEGAS plans to build deeper fields in the coming editions as it pursues Gold and Platinum label status and prepares for the inaugural World Marathon Championships, which it expects Greece to host in 2030.
Prize money
The top eight men and women will receive equal prize money, with US$15,000 for each winner.
| Place | Prize per athlete |
|---|---|
| 1st | $15,000 |
| 2nd | $7,500 |
| 3rd | $5,000 |
| 4th | $2,500 |
| 5th | $2,000 |
| 6th | $1,500 |
| 7th | $1,000 |
| 8th | $500 |
