"International Athletics" Abu Dhabi Marathon awarded "The gold mark of road racing"

ABU DHABI, 27 April / WAM / The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) announced that the Abu Dhabi Marathon, which is organized by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council and sponsored by ADNOC, has been given the “Golden Mark of Road Racing” classification, in recognition of the high regulatory standards applied by the race, and its growing status among the most prominent road running races in the world.

This classification is one of the highest accreditations granted by the International Association of Athletics Federations for road racing, as it evaluates races according to a set of strict standards that include the quality of organization, the level of international participation, safety standards, and services provided to runners, in addition to adherence to internationally approved technical regulations.

The Abu Dhabi Marathon obtaining this world ranking confirms the advanced status that the event has reached since its launch, as it has succeeded in attracting an elite group of professional and amateur runners from all over the world, in addition to thousands of participants from inside and outside the UAE.

This achievement reflects the continuous efforts made by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council in organizing and developing major sporting events, which contributes to enhancing the culture of practicing sports and a healthy lifestyle among members of society, and consolidating Abu Dhabi’s position as a global destination for hosting the most prominent sporting events.

His Excellency Arif Hamad Al Awani, Secretary General of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, said that the Abu Dhabi Marathon’s obtaining the Gold Mark classification for road races represents a new achievement, reflecting the success of the event in applying the highest international regulatory standards, and confirms the growing position that the race enjoys on the map of global running races, in addition to its role in encouraging members of society to practice sports, promoting healthy lifestyles, and improving the quality of life of all members of society.

The Abu Dhabi Marathon is one of the most prominent annual sporting events in the emirate, as it includes distances suitable for different categories of runners, namely: the full marathon (42.2 km), and the half marathon, in addition to shorter distance races that allow participation by wide segments of society.

Since its launch in 2018, the Abu Dhabi Marathon has attracted more than 10,000 runners in its first edition, and has witnessed continuous growth in subsequent editions. In the second edition in 2019, the number of participants increased to more than 16,000 runners.

The third edition was organized in 2021 after being postponed due to the “Covid-19” pandemic, and witnessed the participation of about 12,000 runners, male and female, as part of precautionary measures.

The growth continued in the fourth edition in 2022, with the number of participants exceeding 20,000 runners, while the fifth edition in 2023 recorded about 25,000 runners, leading to the sixth edition in 2024, which attracted more than 33,000 participants from more than 150 nationalities, then the seventh edition, which recorded the participation of more than 37,000 runners, which reflects the rapid growth of the event and its growing position among the most prominent running races. On the roads globally.

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