Riga Marathon
Date18 - 19 May 2024
LocationLatvia Riga, Latvia
Event typeRoad
DistanceMarathon, Half marathon, 10k, 5k, Mile
Primary sponsorRimi Baltic
Established1991 (1991)
Course recordsMarathon:
Men's: 2:08:51 (2019)
Ethiopia Andualem Shiferaw
Women's: 2:26:18 (2019)
Ethiopia Birke Debele
Half Marathon:
Men's: 1:00:30 (2022)
Ethiopia Sikiyas Misganaw
Women's: 1:09:12 (2022)
Kenya Beatrice Mutai
Official siteRiga Marathon
Participants1,887 marathon finishers (2019)[1]
38,398 (all races) (2019)[2]
Map of Rimi Riga Marathon 2023 42,195km course with elevation changes.

The Riga Marathon (also known as the Rimi Riga Marathon) is an annual road marathon held in Riga, Latvia, since 1991. A flat, single-lap marathon course in the Baltics' largest city. The marathon course has been measured and certified by AIMS, the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races and is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athletics. All courses are traffic-free. Rimi Riga Marathon is one of the fastest-growing marathons in Northern Europe. In 2019, there were 25 659 participants over five different distances from 82 countries.[2]

The marathon starts and finishes near Riga Castle, and runs through Old Riga as well as across the Daugava River. In the marathon weekend it is also possible to run 42,195 kilometer distance, 21,095 kilometer half marathon, 10 kilometer, 5 kilometer and mile course distances.

History

For the first time, Latvian athletes competed in the marathon distance at the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, but the first marathon competition in Latvia took place 15 years later in Liepāja. The popularity of marathon running continued to grow in the 1970s, reaching its heyday in the late 1980s. The Folk Song Marathon (1988 – 1990) gathered several thousand runners during the revival, of which 250 - 300 finished at a distance of 42 km.

The start of Riga Marathon history

The first start shot of the Riga Marathon was fired at the Freedom Monument on July 27, 1991, shortly after the time of the barricades, when the capital city was shaken by OMON shots. Then this marathon was called the Riga International Marathon. The participants of this marathon were provided with both grand cash prizes (1000 German Marks for the first place winners), a pennant, and the then exotic fruit - banana - at the finish line.

The track was measured according to the international standards of the time, using a 50 m-long measuring tape and pegs. 735 participants took part in the first Riga Marathon, a third of which were local runners, around 30 representatives of Western countries, and the rest from the USSR.

However, in the next few years after the successful start, the number of participants in the Riga Marathon rapidly decreased. Runners from the Eastern Bloc were deterred from participating by the new visa regime, while Westerners might find the trip to Latvia too risky. Serious difficulties were caused by hyperinflation and repeated changes in the national currency. In 1993, it was possible to pay for participation in the marathon in three currencies - locals could pay both in Latvian rubles and newly issued lats, and foreigners - in Deutsche Marks.

The organizers lacked the sponsors and funds to be included in the AIMS international marathon calendar (at the time it would cost $1,000 per year) to attract western marathon tourists. During this time, local runners also became fewer and fewer, and the running culture and, consequently, the interest of sponsors gradually decreased, reaching the lowest point in 1999, when only 53 Latvian runners finished the 42 km distance.

Certified course and new organizers

In 2007, the track was officially certified and recognized for the first time according to the standards of the International Marathon Association (Association of International Marathons and Distance Races, AIMS).

To increase the number of participants, the Riga Marathon was moved to the spring, attracting school youth to the 5 km distance, however, there were still relatively few runners in the marathon distance and the results could not surpass the performance of the first year.

In 2007, the Riga Marathon got its second wind. After 16 years of work, the original organizer of the marathon, Jānis Karavačiks, entrusted the organization to Aigars Nords, who was full of ambition to turn Riga into a running megalopolis with an ambitious city marathon.

The Riga City Council has entrusted the organization of the marathon to NECom or Nords Event Communications, the new organizers already achieved ambitious growth of the event in the first year. With the help of the new title sponsor Nordea and the slogan "This time for real!" the track was officially certified for the first time following the standards of the International Marathon Association (AIMS). The marathon was included in the international calendar, the usual marathon and 5 km satellite distances were supplemented by a new half-marathon, and the Kenyan Johnston Changwoni broke the Riga Marathon record set in 1991.

Under the auspices of the new organizers, the marathon became one of the fastest-growing and most prestigious running festivals in Northern Europe - from 1300 participants in 2007 to Gold Label gold status and more than 38 thousand participants from 82 countries of the world in 2019.

The start of the first Riga International Marathon, on July 27, 1991, at 6:00 p.m., at the Freedom Monument

The long-term partner of the marathon, Rimi, took on the title sponsor duties in 2019, providing support to the Virtual Running Club established during the Covid-19 pandemic, which kept the audience of the event active during the pandemic.

In 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Latvian Cabinet of Ministers canceled the in-person competition the day before the marathon weekend and moved the marathon to a virtual mode.[3][4][5][lower-alpha 1]

Similarly, the 2021 edition of the race was postponed from the weekend of 16 May to the weekend of 29 August due to the pandemic.[8][9]

But the organizers reached a new peak after the end of the coronavirus pandemic, winning the right to hold the first World Athletics Road Running Championships in Riga (World Athletics Road Running Championships Riga 23) on September 30 - October 1, 2023.

2023 Rimi Riga Marathon was a track rehearsal for the World Championships, allowing recreational runners to try out the World Championship courses.

Course

The start and finish line of the marathon is set on the 11 November Embankment next to Riga Castle.[10] The marathon course crosses over the Daugava river via the Vanšu, Stone, and Island Bridges, and also includes a section that runs through the cobblestoned streets of Old Riga.[11]

All of the courses are single-lap courses and are fairly flat and mostly features the center of the city.

The 33rd edition of Riga Marathon is set to be a rehearsal for the first World Athletics Road Running Championships, which will take place in Riga in 30 September – 1 October. In which the marathon course will be laid out over two laps of the official World Athletics Road Running Championships half marathon course.

Winners

Key:    Course record (in bold)

Marathon

Ed. Year Men's winner Nationality Time[lower-alpha 2] Women's winner Nationality Time[lower-alpha 2]
1 1991 Vladimir Kalenkovich  Soviet Union 2:28:27 Alla Doudayeva  Soviet Union 2:43:53
2 1992 Gusman Abdulin  Kazakhstan 2:21:29 Olga Youdenkova  Belarus 2:47:28
3 1993 Aleksandrs Prokopčuks  Latvia 2:26:41 Svetlana Șepelev-Tcaci  Moldova 2:55:07
4 1994 Normunds Ivzāns  Latvia 2:43:09 Laila Ceika  Latvia 3:19:56
5 1995 Ziedonis Zaļkalns  Latvia 2:32:44 Galina Bernat  Estonia 3:02:11
6 1996 Aleksandrs Prokopčuks  Latvia 2:31:46 Inita Drēziņa  Latvia 3:30:42
7 1997 Normunds Fedotovskis  Latvia 2:33:05 Kaja Mulla  Estonia 3:12:26
8 1998 Ziedonis Zaļkalns  Latvia 2:33:41 Laila Ceika  Latvia 3:27:49
9 1999 Arūnas Balčunas  Lithuania 2:37:10 Laila Ceika  Latvia 3:37:21
10 2000 Ziedonis Zaļkalns  Latvia 2:30:59 Aušra Kavalauskiene  Lithuania 3:12:11
11 2001 Ziedonis Zaļkalns  Latvia 2:27:25 Laila Ceika  Latvia 3:11:45
12 2002 Arūnas Balčunas  Lithuania 2:31:25 Anita Liepiņa  Latvia 3:12:16
13 2003 Arūnas Balčunas  Lithuania 2:28:07 Aušra Kavalauskiene  Lithuania 3:05:26
14 2004 Dmitrijs Sļesarenoks  Latvia 2:27:09 Modesta Drungiliene  Lithuania 2:58:29
15 2005 Vjačeslavs Bambāns  Latvia 2:45:58 Kaja Mulla  Estonia 3:11:09
16 2006 Yuri Vinogradov  Russia 2:41:57 Laura Zariņa  Latvia 3:04:31
17 2007 Johnstone Changwony  Kenya 2:18:30 Ludmila Rodina  Russia 2:50:07
18 2008 Sammy Rotich  Kenya 2:16:42 Kaja Vals  Estonia 3:13:54
19 2009 Oleg Gur  Belarus 2:18:35 Katsiaryna Dziamidava  Belarus 2:47:30
20 2010 Slimani Benazzouz  Morocco 2:17:33 Maryna Damantsevich  Belarus 2:38:16
21 2011 Julius Kuto  Kenya 2:15:48 Desta Tadesse  Ethiopia 2:37:14
22 2012 Titus Kurgat  Kenya 2:16:53 Iraida Aleksandrova  Russia 2:37:37
23 2013 Duncan Koech  Kenya 2:15:34 Aberash Nesga  Ethiopia 2:40:30
24 2014 Yu Chiba  Japan 2:13:44 Tigist Teshome  Ethiopia 2:36:51
25 2015 Haile Tolossa  Ethiopia 2:12:28 Meseret Eshetu  Ethiopia 2:37:03
26 2016 Dominic Kangor  Kenya 2:11:45 Shitaye Gemechu  Ethiopia 2:38:40
27 2017 Joseph Munywoki  Kenya 2:12:14 Bekelech Bedada  Ethiopia 2:31:22
28 2018 Tsedat Ayana  Ethiopia 2:11:00 Georgina Rono  Kenya 2:28:22
29 2019 Andualem Shiferaw  Ethiopia 2:08:51 Birke Debele  Ethiopia 2:26:18
30 2020The marathon was held virtually due to the global pandemic. No comparisons with previous years have been made due to the results' dubious legitimacy. [3]
31 2021 Kristaps Bērziņš  Latvia 2:38:36 Amanda Krūmiņa  Latvia 3:07:17
32 2022 [12] Deribe Robi  Ethiopia 2:12:07 Aberu Mekuria  Ethiopia 2:30:53
33 2023 [13] Aleksandrs Rascevskis  Latvia 2:25:42 Amanda Krūmiņa  Latvia 2:49:59



Half marathon

Year Men's winner Nationality Time[lower-alpha 2] Women's winner Nationality Time[lower-alpha 2]
2006 Viktors Sļesarenoks  Latvia 1:15:20 Anita Liepiņa  Latvia 1:33:43
2007 Dainius Saucikovas  Lithuania 1:09:17 Ilona Marhele  Latvia 1:22:21
2008 Pavel Loskutov  Estonia 1:05:52 Helen Decker  United Kingdom 1:20:00
2009 Joel Komen  Kenya 1:06:49 Daniela Fetcere  Latvia 1:23:05
2010 Valērijs Žolnerovičs  Latvia 1:05:40 Irene Chepkirui  Kenya 1:14:04
2011 Sergei Lukin  Russia 1:06:28 Lyubov Morgunova  Russia 1:15:01
2012 Valērijs Žolnerovičs  Latvia 1:06:04 Jeļena Prokopčuka  Latvia 1:10:27
2013 Jānis Girgensons  Latvia 1:07:24 Jeļena Prokopčuka  Latvia 1:14:39
2014 Ibrahim Mukunga  Kenya 1:05:56 Jeļena Prokopčuka  Latvia 1:14:52
2015 Jānis Girgensons  Latvia 1:06:20 Jeļena Prokopčuka  Latvia 1:13:24
2016 Ibrahim Mukunga  Kenya 1:05:26 Jeļena Prokopčuka  Latvia 1:16:06
2017 Robert Kimaru Magut  Kenya 1:05:04 Inga Zālīte  Latvia 1:23:45
2018 Aleksandr Matviychuk  Ukraine 1:05:14 Milda Vilčinskaite  Lithuania 1:14:38
2019 Jānis Višķers  Latvia 1:05:59 Beatie Deutsch  Israel 1:17:34
2020The marathon was held virtually due to the global pandemic. No comparisons with previous years have been made due to the results' dubious legitimacy. [3]
2021 Jānis Višķers  Latvia 1:07:10 Kadi Kõiv  Estonia 1:20:11
2022 [14] Sikiyas Misganaw  Ethiopia 1:00:30 Beatrice Mutai  Kenya 1:09:12
2023 [15] Dmitrijs Serjogins  Latvia 1:05:02 Ilona Marhele  Latvia 1:20:56

By country

Note: Marathon and Half Marathon statistics only
Latvian folk music choir singing for the marathons participants at Freedom monument, 2022.
Country Total Marathon
(men's)		 Marathon
(women's)		 Half Marathon
(men's)		 Half Marathon
(women's)
 Latvia39129810
 Kenya157142
 Ethiopia134810
 Lithuania83311
 Belarus62400
 Estonia50411
 Russia51211
 Morocco11000
 Kazakhstan11000
 Japan11000
 Moldova10100
 Ukraine10010
 United Kingdom10001
 Israel10001
Five time Riga Half Maraton winner Jeļena Prokopčuka, running New York City Marathon, 2015.

Multiple wins

Note: Marathon and Half Marathon statistics only
Athlete Country Wins Years Distance
Jeļena Prokopčuka  Latvia 5 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 Half Marathon
Laila Ceika  Latvia 4 1994, 1998, 1999, 2001 Marathon
Ziedonis Zaļkalns  Latvia 4 1995, 1998, 2000, 2001 Marathon
Arūnas Balčunas  Lithuania 3 1999, 2000, 2003 Marathon
Aleksandrs Prokopčuks  Latvia 2 1993, 1996 Marathon
Aušra Kavalauskiene  Lithuania 2 2000, 2003 Marathon
Valērijs Žolnerovičs  Latvia 2 2010, 2012 Half Marathon
Jānis Girgensons  Latvia 2 2013, 2015 Half Marathon
Jānis Višķers  Latvia 2 2019, 2021 Half Marathon

Official marathon shirts and medals

The official shirts of the marathon have been created since the 2008 Riga marathon. Each year, one of Latvia's well-known artists is entrusted with creating a different design for the marathon's official running shirts and medals.

Artists who have created designs for Riga Marathon shirts - Andris Vītoliņš, Ieva Iltnere, Ritums Ivanovs, Elita Patmalniece, Ella Kruļanska, Krišs Salmanis, Ilmārs Blumbergs, Raimonds Staprāns, Anna Heinrihsone, Maija Kurševa, Gustavs Klucis (the 2018 shirt design used the artwork of G. Klucis, which was bought at an auction on November 18, 2017, specially for the Latvian centenary marathon shirt),[16] MARE&ROLS and Jānis Šneiders.

In 2019, the design of the marathon medals was created by Artūrs Analts, the recipient of the main award "Best Design" at the London Design Biennale. The design of the 30th anniversary medals of the marathon was created by the Japanese artist Junichi Kawanishi, who is also the author of the Tokyo Olympic Games medals.[17]

The designs of the 2021 Riga Marathon shirts and medals were created by the head of the painting department of the Art Academy of Latvia, associate professor Kristiāns Brekte.[18]

Historical titles

During the valuable history of the Riga Marathon, it has been supported by many different Latvian-based and international companies. Until 2006, the name of the marathon was the International Riga Marathon, when the organizational leadership changed, the word "International" was removed from the name.

  • 1994 – 1996: International Radio SWH Riga Marathon
  • 2000: International Riga Samsung Marathon
  • 2003 – 2004: Riga Maxima International Marathon
  • 2006: Riga Parex marathon
  • 2007 – 2013: Nordea Riga Marathon
  • 2014 – 2018: Lattelecom Riga Marathon
  • 2019: Tet Riga Marathon
  • since 2020: Rimi Riga Marathon

Organizers

Since 2007, the Riga Marathon has been organized by the agency "Nords Event Communications" ("NECom") in cooperation with the Riga City Council.

In addition to the Rimi Riga Marathon, the same organizing team is in charge of the inaugural World Athletics Road Running Championships in Riga on October 1.

Notes

  1. ↑ It had initially been postponed to 2020.10.11 before being cancelled, with registrants also having the option of transferring their entry to another runner or to 2021.[6][7]
  2. 1 2 3 4 h:m:s

References

  1. ↑ "Gundars Beinardts's Race Results". Archived from the original on 12 December 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Jaunumi : Rimi Riga Marathon". Archived from the original on 12 December 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 "Jaunumi : Rimi Riga Marathon". rimirigamarathon.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  4. ↑ "News : Rimi Riga Marathon". rimirigamarathon.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  5. ↑ "Government decides to cancel Riga Marathon | News | LETA". www.leta.lv. Archived from the original on 11 October 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  6. ↑ "Rimi Riga Marathon 2020 is postponed".
  7. ↑ "We will run the Rimi Riga Marathon on October 10–11".
  8. ↑ "News : Rimi Riga Marathon". Archived from the original on 12 December 2020.
  9. ↑ "Next Rīga marathon planned in August 2021 / Article / Eng.LSM.lv". Archived from the original on 12 December 2020.
  10. ↑ "Jaunumi : Rimi Riga Marathon". rimirigamarathon.com. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  11. ↑ "Jaunumi : Rimi Riga Marathon". Archived from the original on 12 December 2020.
  12. ↑ World Athletics Rimi Riga Marathon. (2022, May 15). Worldathletics.Org. Retrieved May 17, 2022, from https://worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7176775
  13. ↑ World Athletics Rimi Riga Half Marathon. (2023, May 7). Worldathletics.Org. Retrieved May 9, 2023, from https://worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7192015
  14. ↑ World Athletics Rimi Riga Half Marathon. (2022, May 15). Worldathletics.Org. Retrieved May 17, 2022, from https://worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7176824
  15. ↑ World Athletics Rimi Riga Half Marathon. (2023, May 7). Worldathletics.Org. Retrieved May 9, 2023, from https://worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7192072
  16. ↑ "Izpārdodam maratona mākslas kreklu kolekciju un ziedojam — Rimi Rīgas maratons". rimirigamarathon.com (in Latvian). Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  17. ↑ Competition, A' Design Award &. "Junichi Kawanishi Riga marathon 2020 Runner's Medals". competition.adesignaward.com. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  18. ↑ "Kristiana Brektes dizaina medaļas un krekli — Rimi Rīgas maratons". rimirigamarathon.com (in Latvian). Retrieved 2022-10-25.

56°56′52″N 24°06′10″E / 56.9478°N 24.1028°E / 56.9478; 24.1028

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