Over 40,000 people take part in Jerusalem Winner Marathon

Over 40,000 people took part in the 12th annual Jerusalem Winner Marathon on Friday, with Kenyan runners Kiprotich Noah Kigen and Margaret Njugna emerging as the winners with a time of 2:18:13 and 2:52:44 respectively.

Second place for the men were Spain's Chakib Achgar Iatrache with 2:25:45 and Israel's Gamber Melakmo with a time of 2:28:30. 

For the women, second place went to Russia's Elena Tolstykh with a time of 2:55:31, followed by Israel's Noa Berkman with 2:59:12.

The winners won a prize of $3,750; the second place won $2,500; and the third place won $1,250.

The Jerusalem marathon, sponsored by Toto-Winner, is headed by the Jerusalem Municipality in cooperation with the Jerusalem Development Authority, with the support and assistance of the Culture and Sport Ministry and the Tourism Ministry. 

What are the different tracks of the marathon?

The race is made up of five tracks:

• The full marathon began at 7 a.m. between the Knesset and the Israel Museum with the finish line at Sacher Park.
• The half marathon began from the same point 15 minutes earlier and finished in a different part of Sacher Park from the full marathon.
• The 10 kilometer run has two groups which started at 9:30 a.m. and 9:45 a.m.. Both groups began at the same starting line as the marathon groups and will finish at the entrance of Sacher Park.
• The five kilometer race began at 7:30 a.m. at the same spot as the other races and ends by the National Library on the Givat Ram campus of Hebrew University.
• A short 1.7 kilometer family track started 11 a.m. beginning at the common starting line and finishing in Sacher Park.

The shortest track is 800 meters and started at 8:30 a.m. at the same point as the other races. The race spanned 400 meters forward at which point the runners turn back to run 400 meters back to where they started.

Who ran?

Runners from 72 different countries took part in the marathon - including Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion, who took part in the 10 kilometer run.

"Since its inception more than a decade ago, the Jerusalem marathon has become one of the most exciting professional sporting events for every runner in Israel and around the world," Lion said.

"I am proud that we were able to hold it again with great success. Today Jerusalem once again revved up its engines, launching many participants of all ages who have come to partake in Israel's biggest sporting event, held in Israel's athletic capital. I congratulate all marathon runners and wish everyone a happy marathon. See you at the next marathon, March 8, 2024."

Registration for the next marathon is already open.