Berlin marathon runner Wilfried Köhnke in Australia.

He doesn’t set records, he doesn’t win… but he never gives up!

The BMW Berlin Marathon celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024 (founded in 1974). Wilfried Köhnke was given a special celebration at this anniversary – he has now completed this world-famous race 49 times, making him the record holder.

Wilfried Köhnke is therefore an ambassador for Berlin – the capital of Germany – and, of course, a ‘figurehead’ of the BMW BERLIN MARATHON. With its 13 world records, this race is considered the fastest in the world, and with over 50,000 participants, it is also one of the largest in the world.

Köhnke has a particular interest in and passion for Australia.
Between 1976 and 2024, he visited the country 23 times. During these visits, he stays with his sister, who
lives there with her family. She emigrated in 1973. Like all track and field athletes and runners, he is a keen statistician (see the attached summary statistics – the detailed statistics in german (athletic career) run to 6 pages.

Naturally, he has also run frequently in Australia
He has taken part in a total of 16 races, including the marathons in Canberra (1991), Melbourne (1993), Southport (1995), Sydney (2003), Orange (2015), Shellharbour (2022) and Pt. Stephens (2023).

On Saturday, 18 April 2026, he will take to the start line at the Wollongong Marathon

In the early nineties, he was inspired by the idea of running a marathon on all five continents. In fact, even back then he was the “forerunner” of the current “Goldstar” series of the Abbott World Marathon Majors.

He ran in New York City in 1992/1993 and 1994, in Hong Kong in 1996, Soweto/Johannesburg in South Africa, as well as in each of these years in Berlin or Hamburg (1994). In total, he has completed 105 marathons and 5 ultra-marathons (100 km four times) since 1975.

His personal best marathon time is 2:44:48 (1985)

Professionally, he is an industrial clerk and worked for over 41 years as an accountant at the German Pension Insurance Fund.

He has been running since 1966. He did not take part in the first BERLIN MARATHON in 1974 because the television commentators at the German Championships said that the marathon was something for specialists, and the story/legend of Pheidippides, who collapsed and died after his run from Marathon to Athens, frightened him!

From 1975, he took part in the 2nd BERLIN MARATHON and was gripped by marathon fever.
His weekly training volume is now 43 kilometres.

He modestly describes himself as a recreational athlete. Not a leisure runner, but not a competitive athlete either; he lies somewhere in between, says Köhnke

He volunteers as chairman of the athletics club at „Polizei SV Berlin“, although he has neverworked for the police,

His big goal is to finish the BMW BERLIN MARATHON for the 50th time on 27 September 2026.

Horst Milde
Founder BERLIN-MARATHON 1974

Wilfried Köhnke’s races in Australia