The Utrecht Marathon is an annual

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

competition which takes place in Utrecht, the Netherlands, usually in April. It was first held in 1978. In addition to the main marathon competition, the day's events include a half marathon, 10 km, and 1.5 km races. The marathon race records are 2:09:41 for men (set by William Kipchumba Kwambai in 2009) and 2:33:40 for women (set by

Anne van Schuppen Antje ("Anne") Elisabeth van Schuppen (born 11 October 1960 in Doornspijk, Gelderland) is a former long-distance runner from the Netherlands, who represented her native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. There she finished in ...

at the 1992 edition).

History

First held in 1978 as the ''U N Marathon'', the event featured a full marathon competition and also a half marathon race. It attracted a largely domestic field of runners in its first decade and began to attract other European runners in the 1990s. The marathon race was removed from the programme of events between 1999 and 2004, and the city of Utrecht hosted just the half marathon during this period. Another organisation had created the ''Leidsche Rijn Marathon'' in 2000, whose course ran through the local area from Vleuten to De Meern. The race organiser groups combined their efforts in 2005, forming the Utrecht Marathon, and the city of Utrecht once again hosted annual marathon and half marathon races.Michiels, Paul & van Hemert, Wim & Loonstra, Klass (2011-04-25)
Utrecht Marathon

Association of Road Racing Statisticians The Association of Road Racing Statisticians is an independent, non-profit organization that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics regarding road running races. The primary purpose of the ARRS is to maintain a valid list of world road record ...

. Retrieved on 2011-05-01. The race was formerly named the ''Jaarbeurs Utrecht Marathon'' for sponsorship reasons. The 2013 race was cancelled due to a lack of sponsorship. The Utrecht Marathon has had a restart under the name of Utrecht Science Park Marathon. Named after the University and Business centre in the east of the city, where the marathon starts and finishes. The 2020 edition of the race was postponed to 2021 due to the

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the com ...

pandemic A pandemic () is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread across a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of individuals. A widespread endemic (epidemiology), endemic disease wi ...

, with registrants having the option of transferring their entry to another runner.

Course

The current marathon course is within the city and has a clock-wise looped format.Event - Course
Utrecht Marathon. Retrieved on 2011-05-01. The race starts and ends on Croeselaan, which is near

Jaarbeurs Utrecht The Jaarbeurs (; Dutch for 'Yearly Fair') is an exhibition and convention centre in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Noted events include the former Space '86, the Hobby Computer Club Days (''HCC Dagen''), and the Mega Record & CD Fair. The venue is ...

(a large building complex for events and trade fairs). The half marathon follows a shorter version of the marathon course while the 10 km and 5 km events follow a looped route close to the streets of the city centre.

Prize money incentives

In response to the increasing dominance of Kenyan runners in Dutch marathons, Utrecht race organiser Louran van Keulen revised the prize money scheme for the 2011 edition of the event. He offered 100 € as the prize for first place, but a Dutch winner would receive up to 10,000 € in bonus prizes.Casert, Raf (2011-04-18)
Utrecht Marathon discourages foreign runners amid cries of discrimination
''

Canadian Press The Canadian Press (CP; french: La Presse canadienne, ) is a Canadian national news agency headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Established in 1917 as a vehicle for the time's Canadian newspapers to exchange news and information, The Canadian Pre ...

''. Retrieved on 2011-05-01. Utrecht City Council, which subsidised the event, sought a review of whether the move was discriminatory towards foreign athletes and the council's executive for sport remarked that it "does not make the city look great". Van Keulen defended his position by arguing that he wanted to invest in

grassroots A grassroots movement is one that uses the people in a given district, region or community as the basis for a political or economic movement. Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from the local level to effect change at t ...

sport and improve local facilities, with a long-term plan to see Dutch runners challenge Africans at the top level. He had specially selected twenty of the best Dutch male runners to participate in a "Dutch Battle" in Utrecht. A Nairobi-based businessman, Gert-Jan van Wijk, disapproved of the prize scheme and offered to personally make up the difference for foreign athletes, saying: "I think the Netherlands is afraid of competition, afraid of the unknown, afraid of different cultures. Holland is turning inside herself, instead of becoming stronger by taking up the competition". A combination of the time needed to acquire a visa and lack of foreign invitations to the event meant that the regular Kenyan contingent, including 2008 winner

Sammy Chumba Sammy is a nickname, frequently for people named Samuel, and also an English spelling of the Arabic name Sami. People Music *Sammy Adams (born 1987), American rapper and songwriter * Sammy Cahn (1913-1993), American songwriter * Sammy Davis Jr. ...

, was absent that year. Young Dutchman

Michel Butter Michel Butter (born 5 November 1985) is a Dutch long-distance runner. He was the silver medallist over 10,000 metres at the 2007 European Athletics U23 Championships and represented his country at the 2008 European Cross Country Championships, co ...

was the 2011 winner, breaking a four-year Kenyan winning streak. Kenyan John Mutai Kipkorir, having entered the race among the fun runners and led in the latter stages, was the runner-up and received a one-off 4950 € payout from van Wijk for his performance.Mutuota, Mutwiri (2011-04-29)
Dutch pledge for Utrecht's Mutai

98.4 Capital FM 98.4 Capital FM (other variations of the name include Capital FM and Capital FM Kenya) is a Kenyan urban music radio station. Location Its offices are situated on the 19th floor of ''Lonrho House'', along Standard Street in the central busin ...

. Retrieved on 2011-05-01.

Past winners

Marathon

Key: *''Note: No marathon was held in Utrecht in 1999 and the 2001 event was cancelled due to an outbreak of

foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids. The virus causes a high fever lasting two to six days, followe ...

.''

Half marathon

References

;List of winners *Michiels, Paul & van Hemert, Wim & Loonstra, Klass (2011-04-25)
Utrecht Marathon

. Retrieved on 2011-05-01.

External links

Official website
{{Marathons in the Netherlands Marathons in the Netherlands Recurring sporting events established in 1978 1978 establishments in the Netherlands Spring (season) events in the Netherlands Sports competitions in Utrecht (city)