ATHENS CLASSIC MARATHON 30TH ANNIVERSARY – A brief History & Summary Profile

The international Athens Classic Marathon (ACM) is continuously organized, since 1983, by the Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS).  It is dedicated to the memory of the Balkan athletics champion and pacifist, Grigoris Labrakis. 

It is a very popular race and tourist event, held every year on the 2^nd Sunday of November. 

The opportunity of a runner to run the course that was originally run in 490 BC, by the ancient Athenian soldier and message bearer following the Marathon Battle, then by Spyros Louis, the first Olympic Marathon Champion of 1896, and lately by the Marathon champions of the 1969 & 1982 European Athletics Championships, 1997 IAAF World Championships and 2004 Olympic Games, makes the Athens Classic Marathon an outstanding race which attracts, every year, more than 20,000 runners from Greece and 100 other countries all over the world.

The Athens Classic Marathon has a unique international "position" since it is the only one held on the authentic, Olympic Marathon course.  The linear-shape 42,195m race starts at the Municipality of Marathon, runs along the Tomb of Marathon, passes through a number of Attica land municipalities and finishes in Athens, right inside the beautiful marble stadium of the first Modern Olympic Games of 1896, the Panathenaikon Stadium. 

So, while the ancient history of this race runs back to more than 2,500 years, its relatively recent history starts along with the beginning of the Marathon event, in 1896, when Michel Breal's idea for such an event was adopted by the Greek organizers and Pierre de Coubertin during the first Olympic Games. 

After 1896, a number of races took place on the "authentic" course, starting on  October 2, 1955, when the 1^st international Marathon Race took place in Athens.  It is worth mentioning here that the Starting Official of this race was the legendary Greek Marathon runner, Stelios Kyriakidis, winner of the 1946 Boston Marathon.  A few athletes (16) participated in this very first-after-1896 race along the authentic course, as well as in the next five ones, in 1957, 1959, 1961, 1963 and 1965.

 A brilliant moment of the race's history occurred in 1961, when the winner of the race was one of the most legendary Marathon athletes of the world, the Ethiopian Abebe Bikila.

From 1967 to 1980, the race became annual, recognized also as the Greek Marathon National Championship and moved to April 6^th, the "Olympic Day".    

For unknown reasons, from 1973 to 1980, a second international Marathon race was also held on the authentic course, every September.  From this period, there was one race which stands out, in 1969, when all first five Olympic winners of the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico participated in the race.

The winner was the British Bill Adcocks with 2.11'.07'', a record of the authentic course that remained unbeatable until the 2004 Olympics.  Also, it is important to mention that since 1972 the race became open to non-systematic runners, gradually raising the participation numbers to almost a thousand.  

In 1974, the first woman ever participated in the race.

In 1982, the organizer of the "Original Run", George Kourmouzis, represented Athens Marathon in the founding meeting (and participated in the first Executive Board) of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS), in London.

The very recent history and numbering of the race starts in 1983, when SEGAS decided to organize the "1^st Popular Marathon Race Grigoris Labrakis".

Since 1983, the participation in the race has gradually increased to 5,800 in 2004, and more than 18,000 in 2011.  The running clubs of Greece, known as "Health Runners Clubs", played a key role in the development of the race.   In 2001, just before the Athens 2004 Olympics, a major Greek bank, ALPHA BANK, offered its sponsorship to the race giving a major boost to the promotion of the event and the improvement of services provided to runners.

Since 2006, the Athens Classic Marathon event has made a significant progress in all fields widely recognized by the Greek State, other international marathon races, IAAF, AIMS and participating runners.  The efforts of SEGAS regarding the development of the event have been put under the auspices of the President of the Hellenic Republic (since 2006) and UNESCO (since 2011) featuring the historic importance of this race and its contribution to Peace and Friendship among nations.  In 2011, OPAP s.a., the leading Gaming Operator in Greece, became major sponsor of the ACM until 2016.

The ACM record holders are the Moroccan Abdelkerim Boubker (2.11'.40" in 2011) and the Lithuanian Rasa Drazdaukaite (2.31'.06" in 2010), while the record holders of the authentic course are the Italian Stefano Baldini (2.10'.55'') and the Japanese Mizuki Noguchi (2.26'20"), both achieved during the 2004 Olympics.  As far as local athletes are concerned, the ACM Greek record holders are Michalis Parmakis (2.20'.48" in 2010) and Konstantina Kefala (2.40'.36" in 2010), who is also the authentic course record holder.  The Greek male authentic course record holder is Nikos Pollias (2.17'.56" in 2004 Olympics), who is also the multi-winner of the course (4 times, in 1993, 1995, 1998 & 2000).

The year of the 2,500 Anniversary of the Marathon legend, IAAF awarded to the Athens Classic Marathon the "Gold Road Race Label", a recognition awarded to less than 25 races worldwide in 2010.  This year, participation and race records were broken during the Athens Classic Marathon in front of major Marathon legends like Stefano Baldini, Joan Benoit-Samuelson, Constantina Dita, Rosa Mota, Ron Hill, Katherine Switzer and Abel Anton, whose presence in Athens made the entire event one of the most important in the world.

Today, the Athens Classic Marathon is a 4-day event, held during the 2^nd weekend of November, including on top of all the authentic Marathon Race:

The «Athens Classic Marathon EXPO» (from Thursday to Saturday), inside Zappeion Megaron at the historic City Center, a large exhibition on Sport and Tourist products and services, which is staged parallel to the ACM Registration Center.

The Athens Classic Marathon Opening Ceremony (on Saturday), which takes place inside the archaeological site of the Marathon Tomb and leads to the Lighting of the Marathon Flame, a new symbol of AIMS which annually travels around the world reminding to people the values of the Marathon Movement.  The Flame has already been hosted in Boston, Chicago, Toronto, Quito, Shanghai, Xiamen, Mumbai, Belgrade, Genoa, Prague, Omsk, Vienna and Pieter-Maritzburg.

·         The AIMS Marathon Symposium (on Saturday), an annual international seminar established in 2007 by AIMS, SEGAS, IAAF and the Municipality of Marathon, which hosts the event at the venue of the historic start of the race, the eve of the Athens Classic Marathon race. 

This Symposium brings more than 50 representatives of other international marathon races in Athens every year.

·         The shorter road races of 5K and 10K, 1000m (for Special Olympic athletes) and 700m (for kids), organized (on Sunday) parallel to the Marathon race and introducing team and family registration options.

Athens Classic Marathon registration opens in early March every year and goes on until the participation limit is met.  Registrations are submitted online (www.athensclassicmarathon.gr), while payment of registration fees may be settled either by credit card or bank wire. All participants receive a registration confirmation note after successful submission of registration, acknowledgment about their bib number just before the race and finally, after the race, they may download their participation diploma and personal finish time for free.

 

The ACM Participation Package includes:

• Welcome services at the Athens International Airport (Information Desk);
• Free Use of Public Transport Means for 3 days prior και 2 days after the race;
• Bib Number with the name of the runner printed on;
• Race T-shirt, and other commemorative gifts from ACM and its Sponsors;
• 50% discount on the entrance fees at the Acropolis Museum and the Acropolis archaeological site;
• Race Program with Technical & Medical Instructions;
• Free Transport from Athens to the Marathon Start area on the race day;
• Electronic timing (chip);
• Unique Finishers' Medal, depicting the Panathenaikon Stadium.

 

During the Race, water & refreshments stations (every 2.5km), bananas & chocolates (along the course and after the finish), massage services & full emergency medical support is provided to all runners.

Personal Photo Services offered by Marathon-Photos.com, within 24 hours after the race; All kinds of ACM merchandising available at the EXPO and the ACM website.

Weather: The average minimum temperature during the 2^nd weekend of November is 11oC, while the average maximum temperature may reach 19oC, Rain possibilities are around 10% during this week.

In 2012, the Athens Classic Marathon will celebrate its 30^th Anniversary and its goal is to exceed 30,000 runners in all races.

 

Organisers

 

Athens Classic Marathon