The Rome Marathon is an annual marathon competition hosted by the city of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

History

The competition has also doubled as the Italian Marathon championships on two occasions; in 1983 and 1986. The race date was shifted from the traditional March schedule to 1 January in 2000 for a special edition of the event to celebrate the beginning of the new millennium. The ''IAAF Rome Millennium Marathon'' received the support of

Primo Nebiolo Primo Nebiolo (14 July 1923 – 7 November 1999) was an Italian sports official, best known as president of the worldwide athletics federation IAAF. Primo Nebiolo was the ideator of the IAAF Continental Cup. Biography As an active athlete i ...

and national federation president

Gianni Gola Gianni is an Italian name (occasionally a surname), a short form of the Italian Giovanni and a cognate of John meaning God is gracious. Gianni is the most common diminutive of Giovanni in Italian. People with this given name * Gianni Agnelli (i ...

. The race start point was at Saint Peter's Square and

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

delivered a short

benediction A benediction ( Latin: ''bene'', well + ''dicere'', to speak) is a short invocation for divine help, blessing and guidance, usually at the end of worship service. It can also refer to a specific Christian religious service including the exposit ...

in approval of the event and the Bells of Saint Peter's replaced the usual

starter's pistol A starting pistol or starter pistol is a blank handgun that is fired to start track and field races, as well as competitive swimming races at some meets. Starter guns cannot fire real ammunition without first being extensively modified: Blank ...

to signal the beginning of the race. The 2010 race was held in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of

Abebe Bikila ''Shambel'' Abebe Bikila ( am, ሻምበል አበበ ቢቂላ; August 7, 1932 – October 25, 1973) was an Ethiopian marathon runner who was a back-to-back Olympic marathon champion. He is the first Ethiopian Olympic gold medalist, winnin ...

's win at the 1960 Rome Olympic marathon race, a watershed moment in the development of East African competitive running. The 2010 men's winner, Siraj Gena, earned a 5000

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bonus for crossing the finish line

barefoot Barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. There are health benefits and some risks associated with going barefoot. Shoes, while they offer protection, can limit the flexibility, strength, and mobility of the foot and can lead to h ...

in honour of Abebe Bikila's style.Sampaolo, Diego (2010-03-21)
Ethiopian double as Rome celebrates Bikila – Rome Marathon report
IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-03-22. The 2020 edition of the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak, with all registration fees being applied for a guaranteed entry to the 2021 edition of the race, and all finishers to be awarded two medals in 2021.

Winners

Key: : Course record (in bold) : Short course : Italian championship race

Notes

References

;List of winners
Città di Roma Marathon
Association of Road Racing Statisticians (2009-03-27). Retrieved on 2010-01-31.

External links

Official website
{{IAAF Silver Label Marathons in Italy Marathon Recurring sporting events established in 1982 Spring (season) events in Italy Athletics in Rome 1982 establishments in Italy