2004 Paris Marathon

The Paris Marathon is an annual marathon which takes place from the Champs-Élysées heading towards the Place de la Concorde and continuing through the city to finish at Foch Avenue.

Along with the Berlin Marathon and the London Marathon, it is one of the most popular long-distance annual running events in Europe.

History

The first Paris Marathon took place in 1896. A big crowd gathered to watch 191 participants. It was run over the 40 km separating Paris from Conflans and the organisers decided to award a commemorative medal to all runners who finished the race in less than 4 hours.

The distance of 40km was chosen as it was the distance separating Marathon from Athens. The current distance of the race is 42.195 km - the standard Olympic Marathon length.

This first race was won by Len Hurst from England who crossed the finishing line in 2 hours, 31 minutes and 30 seconds. His prize money was 200 francs.

Modern Paris Marathon

The present Paris Marathon dates from 1976. It is normally held on a Sunday in April and is limited to 37,000 runners. It is organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation. It is notable for the attractive route through the heart of the city of Paris, and for the food and drinks stations which include wine, beer, cider and oysters. It is also known for lack of crowd support, especially through the final miles around the Bois de Boulogne.

The 2006 race was the 30th anniversary, and was marked with special souvenirs for the runners. The organisers, however, were embarrassed by the theft of finishing medals by members of the public pretending to be runners. Approximately 2,000 new medals had to be minted and posted out to runners who did not receive a medal on the day.

Unlike most other marathons, but like all races in France, the Paris Marathon requires a doctor's note affirming the runner is physically fit to run a marathon.

The route

The race starts on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées going downhill to circle round the Place de la Concorde before turning right onto Rue de Rivoli. The route passes the Louvre, then goes round the Place de la Bastille, and down Boulevard Soult to the Bois de Vincennes. A long loop of the Bois de Vincennes returns the route into the heart of Paris. The halfway point is reached at Rue de Charenton. The route now follows the course of the Seine, passing Île de la Cité and going under the Pont Neuf, then a series of tunnels. There is a large drinks station and foot massage at Trocadéro, opposite the Eiffel Tower. The route continues along the Seine, before branching off east to eventually pass though Bois de Boulogne, emerging for the final 200 metres and the finish on the Avenue Foch.

Results

2008

The race was run on April 06, 2008. The top male finisher, Ethiopian Tsegaye Kebede, just missed the course record with a time of 2h06’40. The top female finisher was Kenya’s Martha Komu finishing in a time of 2h25’33. Her partner, Frenchman Simon Munyutu, qualified for this year's Olympics with a time of 2h09’24. The handisport race was won was by Mexico’s Saul Mendoza in a time of 1h32’27 over France’s Denis Lemeunier and Heinz Frei of Switzerland. 29,706 competitors started the race

2007

The race was run on April 15, 2007. The top male finisher was Shami Mubarak from Qatar in a time of 2:07:19 narrowly beating frenchman Paul Astin. The top female finisher was Tafa Magarsa from Ethiopia in a time of 2:25:08. Handisport race was won by Kurt Fearnley in 1:30:45.A runner who also ran in London's British 10K that year. 28,261 competitors started the race.

2006

The race was run on April 9, 2006. The top male finisher was Gashaw Melese from Ethiopia in a time of 2:08:03. The top female finisher was Irina Timofeyeva from Russia in a time of 2:27:02.She also ran later in the British 10K. South African Ernst Van Dyck won the Handisport race in 1:33:58.

2005

The 29th Paris Marathon was run on 10 April, 2005. The top male finisher was Kenyan runner Salim Kipsang with a time of 2h08'02, followed in by fellow Kenyan Paul Biwott 13 seconds later. The top female finisher was Lydiya Grigoryeva in 2h27'00. Ernst Van Dyck won the Handisport race in a time of 1h23’17.

2004

The top male finisher was newcomer Ethiopian Ambesse Tolossa in a time of 2:08:56. This was the Ethiopian's 9th ever marathon and he beat the race favourite - Kenya's Raymond Kipkoech who came in at 2:10:08. The fastest female was Kenyan runner Salina Kosgei (also a newcomer on the event) in 2:24:32, ahead of Ethopian Asha Gigi and France's Corrine Raux. Switzerland's Heinz Frei won the wheelchair event in 1h37'43. 30,430 competitors started the race.

2003

The top male finisher was Kenyan Mike Rotich with a time of 2:06:33, setting a new record for this event. Coming in second, France's Benoît Zwierzchiewski equalled the existing European record, at 2:06:33. The fastest female was Kenyan runner Béatrice Omwanza in 2:27:41, ahead of Italy's Rosaria Console.

France's Joel Jeannot won the wheelchair event.

Paris Marathon 2004 - Delaware runners

Ray races 2004 Paris Marathon in France. Group of PCVRC Delaware runners. Photos of Eiffel Tower. Trip and race narrative. Paris Metro and hotel.

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Official Web Site of the 2004 Paris Marathon

Official Web Site of the 2004 Paris Marathon (April 4, 2004). The route, rules, on-line registration, runners list, training programm, Marathon Expo, Past winners.

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ING New York City Marathon 2004 Photos - www.fast-women.com

Gigi, 31, has a PR of 2:26:05 from the 2004 Paris Marathon.

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Official Web Site of the 2004 Paris Semi Marathon

Official Web Site of the 2004 Semi-Marathon Paris (March 7, 2004). Presentation, route, rules, on-line registration, runners list.

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Paris Marathon - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2004: Ambesse Tolosa Ethiopia: 2h 08mn 56s: Salina Kosgei Kenya: 2h 24mn 32s: 2003 ... The 29th Paris Marathon was run on 10 April, 2005. The top male finisher was Kenyan runner ...

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2004 Paris Marathon - Cemetery, Room Party, Eiffel Tower

2004 Paris Marathon in France. Cemetery, Room Party, Eiffel Tower visits for Delaware runners. Photos of city streets.

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2004 Paris Marathon - Notre Dame, Pasta Dinner

Ray Christensen runs 2004 Paris Marathon along with running club teammates.

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iaaf.org - Rotich returns to site of 2:06:33 PB – Paris Marathon ...

... and third in 2004 (2:10:30). SEventh in last summer's World Championships in Helsinki (2:12:39), he has prepared for this race with a 1:02:12 clocking in the Paris Half Marathon in ...

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Paris Int'l Marathon News Articles

News From: Friday, April 2, 2004 : Paris Int'l Marathon : Pre-Race Review/ Lineup : 34,500 line-up for Paris Marathon (IAAF) Kenyan runners Raymond Kipkoech and Beatrice Omwanza are the ...

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Multiple Myeloma: Diane Jette is Running in the Paris Marathon - April ...

April 4, 2004 I will be running in the Paris Marathon. I have already run in the Boston and New York Marathons. For those two marathons, I ran for myself.

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