Vienna City Marathon to Take Place with a High Number of Runners
The Vienna City Marathon will celebrate its 40th anniversary with more people than last year, according to the applications and Vienna Mayor Michael Ludwig. Around 34.000 people have already applied and 36.000 – 40.000 people are expected to participate in the marathon.
The Vienna City Marathon Will Take Place on April 23, / Picture: © Dira0101, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Austria's largest sporting event, the Vienna City Marathon (VCM), will celebrate its 40th anniversary on April 23, 2023. Vienna's Mayor Michael Ludwig expressed his excitement about the running event at a media briefing today, Monday, at the Ringturm in the Inner City. "The Vienna City Marathon is Austria's biggest running event and is one of the greatest events in this city. The images carried around the world from this running festival show not only the outstanding architecture in the town but also the best-running course in the world."
Mayor Ludwig described the organization of the running events as "record-breaking", with a total of up to 40,000 active participants and around 200,000 spectators expected along the route this year. The successful cooperation of 115 organizations and institutions - including almost all municipal departments of the city - would make this task possible, Ludwig explained. On behalf of all employees and all organizations, Vienna's mayor thanked long-time VCM organizer Wolfgang Konrad. Ludwig described the VCM as an event that focuses on the common, which can be seen, for example, in the relay marathon, where a group completes a distance of 42,195 Kilometers.
According to Meinbezirk, in 1984, 794 runners took to the starting line for the first time. Since then, 635,000 participants have run more than 14 million kilometers and circled the globe 350 times. The highlight of this year will of course be the already mentioned 42.195-kilometer run across Vienna on Sunday.
As reported by Vienna.at, Those who do not want to tackle the entire 42.195 kilometers have even more alternatives this year. The half marathon, the relay race, and the Inclusion Run will be joined by a new 5-kilometer run. On the day before, i.e. on Saturday, it leads once around the ring. The new addition is aimed, among others, at newcomers and returning runners, it was emphasized. In addition, even a world record is tackled - quite apart from possible sporting best performances. At the Technical Museum, participants can become part of a corresponding attempt. The longest picture painted by runners is to be created. On two, altogether 40 meters long banners one can immortalize oneself. The brushes are ready.