The 45th edition of the Zurich Marató de Barcelona arrives this Sunday with important records and news. A few days ago, the test, which was presented this Wednesday at the Olympic and Sports Museum in the Catalan capital, posted the sign that there are no bibs. The 20,000 available were sold out, which represents the third best participation figure in its history, the largest of this decade and also the highest of the last five editions. In fact, the race record has been almost broken (20,385 bibs in 2016). “We are the second largest marathon in Spain after Valencia, and with a growth of almost 5,000 compared to last year,” stressed Mauro Llorens, the race director.
More significant is the fact that up to 57% of the athletes will come from abroad, thus breaking the ceiling of international presence. Up to 107 nationalities will be represented, with France and the United Kingdom as the main foreign countries. Female participation is also notable, where there has been an uptick. One in four participants (25%) will be a woman, which consolidates the Barcelona marathon as one of the marathons with the largest presence of women in the world. “5,000 women is a record in the race,” Llorens highlighted. Of all the participants, up to 6,693 are Catalan.
All of them will be able to try to improve themselves on a route totally different from the usual one of recent years. The start will be on Passeig de Gràcia and the end at the Arc del Triomf. It is a more central circuit (the most central in history) and it is presented as faster. The accumulated positive slope has been reduced by more than 30 meters and up to six curves have been eliminated. There will only be 33 turns.
“We are on the right way. We have the best marathon in Europe from the point of view of the popular “runner” (Sports Councilor of the City Council). The previous route was a very beautiful route, but now we have not lost the monumental component. You are on your way to having the perfect tour. It is a very attractive circuit. Next year will determine definitively whether it is the perfect route or not,” said David Escudé, Councilor for Sports at Barcelona City Council.
Most favorable circuit. Therefore better conditions, if the wind allows it, for elite athletes to break the Barcelona marathon record, held by Marius Kimutai, from Bahrain, with 2h5m6s, and the Ethiopian Zeineba Yimer Worku (2h19m44s). . 23 men and 13 women of high competition will try to break these records. In men, the main favorites are the Ethiopians Abebe Negewo (2h4m51s, Valencia 2019) and Fikre Bekele Tefera (2h6m16s, winner in Linz in 2022). In women, the most notable participants are the Ethiopians Degitu Azimeraw, second in London 2021 (2h17m58s) and Zinas Senbeta, winner in Ljubljana 2023 (2h21m5s). The Barcelona Marathon is also valid as the Catalan Distance Championship. There will be five departures staggered every seven minutes. The first, at 8:30 a.m.
