Light and Fun Marathon

A magazine conducted a survey on 500 members of a marathon club via the internet and found that 52 percent of participants chose the Seoul International Marathon as the best for breaking their own personal records. JoongAng Ilbo Marathon ranked second (19 percent), and the Chosun Ilbo Chuncheon Marathon was third (11 percent).

The main advantage allowing for reducing the time spent running in the Seoul International Marathon is its even course. The altitude from sea level is less than 30m, and there are gentle ascents only at the 16-km point and the 35-km point in the 2006 course. Approximately 40km among the course consists of downhill or plain roads.

Yoo Moon-jong, vice president of the establishment committee in the Korea Athletics Federation, surveys the course of the Seoul International Marathon every time. He said, “I like the Seoul International Marathon course best among any marathons held in Korea. From 2006, a boring course near Songpa-gu was replaced with one passing along Cheonggyecheon and the Seoul forests. It adds more fun to running.”

The Seoul International Marathon is the only one which uses a course passing through downtown Seoul.

Also, participants can expect to break their own records because they can run the first marathon of the spring in top condition right after winter disciplinary training. As to prove this, 846 runners recorded sub-three hour marks in the Seoul International Marathon 2006. This number is four times more than the second highest number, which had 187 people, and the third, 167 people.

Applicants can apply for Seoul International Marathon-cum-Dong-A Marathon 2007, which will be held on March 18 2007, until December 20. Only 25,000 spaces are available.

yjongk@donga.com