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The 20th edition of Nordea Riga Marathon is less than 35 days away! The Mayor of Riga will run half-marathon distance on May 23!
There are less than 35 days until Riga marathon and we already have more than 5 000 participants registered from 34 countries around the world. We expect around 10 000 participants and hope that the 20th edition of Nordea Riga Marathon will be a great celebration of running for all of us.
The 20th edition of marathon will feature several new options for runners. Firstly, the new course will start and finish at the 11th November Embankment at the very centre of Riga, next to the President’s Castle and river Daugava. Secondly, time-control will be implemented using the latest generation time-control chips implemented in runners’ bibs. Thirdly, we expect to have a record number of foreign runners from around 40 countries.
The new course:
All the distances – marathon, half-marathon and Fun Run will start and finish at the 11th November Embankment. As usual, all the participants will be able to cross Vanshu Bridge and enjoy the beautiful panorama of Old Riga, a UNESCO heritage site. Coming back to the centre, the runners will pass by Freedom Monument as well as run through the Old Town. The new course has been designed in close cooperation with the Riga City Council to offer a good chance to see some of the best parts of the Capital of Latvia.
See the new course map here! [ Nordea Riga Marathon Course Map 2010 ]
The Mayor of Riga Nils Usakovs has announced his plans to run half-marathon distance. If you do want to meet him during the race, look out for No. 1, that’s the number he’s going to wear.
The new timing system:
Nordea Riga Marathon will be the 2nd marathon in Europe to use the new timing-control technology embedded in runners’ bib and brought to Riga by TDS, the leading European time-control provider. The new system will reduce possibilities of errors compared to the regular chip system as well as let the runners keep the chip as a souvenir. Additionally, the new system will allow the results to be sent in SMS form right after runners cross the finish line, while personal results will be uploaded to marathon website 15 minutes after finish. There will be no need to return your chip anymore.
As usual, the results will be published by the leading national daily “Diena” on Monday following Marathon. So please don’t forget to ask for “Diena” in news-stands all over Riga on Monday, May 24!
The record number of foreign runners:
Nordea Riga Marathon expects to host around 1 500 - 2 000 foreign runners from 40 countries. The leading countries participating in Nordea Riga marathon are Finland, Germany, England, Italy, and Baltic countries. Additionally, Nordea Riga Marathon is expected a very interesting elite field representing countries like Finland, Kenya, Uganda, Ukraine, Russia, Estonia and Ethiopia. We believe that efforts of our partners – airBaltic and LIVE RIGA -, have influenced the rise of interest to visit Riga.
We hope you will enjoy your stay in Riga! See you soon!
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