Prague International Marathon an exciting last-chance 2024 Paris Olympic qualifier

This year’s Prague International Marathon will be even more full of stories than usual. In addition to the elite runners looking to attack the race records of 2:05:09 (men) and 2:19:46 (women), the marathon also becomes a last chance for runners to qualify for the Olympic Games in Paris.

The IOC moved the qualification deadline by a few days so that Olympic hopefuls could have a last chance to make the standard at this traditional event in the calendar. So, in addition to Ethiopian or Kenyan endurance runners, the race will see elite competitors from China, Brazil, Mexico, Mongolia, Peru, Ecuador and India. There will also be some from Portugal and Bulgaria. In total, over 8,000 participants will take to the streets of Prague, and half of them will be from overseas. The 29th edition of this RunCzech event will start on Sunday at the Old Town Square from 9:00 a.m.

Prague and Copenhagen are the last opportunities to achieve the Olympic standard for the marathon. Both on May 5th.

♂️2:08:10
♀️2:26:50

Elite field Prague: https://t.co/wilB9EAEH9

Elite field Copenhagen: https://t.co/wZqvOngpIA pic.twitter.com/sNXrdhQgOr

— Fábio Lima (@FabiusLima1) May 1, 2024

The course record

The Prague International Marathon race record is a tough one to beat. Alexander Mutiso’s 2:05:09 from last year has set a high standard. However, there will be four runners at the start who have already run under 2:05:00. The fastest in the race is Herpasa Negasa Kitesa with a personal best of 2:03:40 from 2019 and a 2:04:49 from Seoul 2022. Having been hit by injury, Prague is the venue for his big comeback. Hot on his heels will be Lemi Berhanu Hayle, this year’s Mumbai Marathon winner, with a personal best from Dubai of 2:04:33. He recently learned that he is not on the Ethiopian team for the Olympic Games. “I’m very disappointed that I didn’t get a chance for Paris, but I want to win here. I’m very ready and I’d like to break the race record,” Hayle said at the press conference.

Favourites also include Abebe Negewo Degefa (2:04:51) and Abayneh Degu Tsehay (2:04:53). “This year we had a record performance at the Prague Half  Marathon. If the weather is good, Prague has a chance to see a race with a time under 2:05:00 for the first time,” says Carlo Capalbo, president of the RunCzech organizing committee.

The women

Among the women, the African competitors should also dominate the racing. Kenyan Dorcas Jepchirchir Tuitoek, winner of the marathon in Hamburg and Amsterdam (2:20:02), is the favourite. She has chosen Prague as the event to try to break the 2:20:00 barrier. The Ethiopian Buzunesh Getachew Gudeta has already done that with 2:19:27. The race between these two endurance women could both break the 2:20 mark and also the course record. Israels Lonah Salpeter’s record run in 2019 (2:19:46) is so far the only sub 2:20 performance in Prague.

Because the Prague International Marathon is the last place to be able to make the Olympic standard, there are a host of athletes who have made the journey from around the world. One runner has come from China, specifically with the qualification in mind, and the athletes who have come from Brazil also have great hopes. The well-known Brazilian runner Paulo Paula was nominated for the Rio Olympics after running in Prague in 2016. Wendell Souza or Graziele Zarri will look to do the same. Will they manage to reach the Olympic dream? Runners from Ecuador Paola Bonilla and Peruvian Ferdinan Cereceda will also arrive with great ambitions. Most of these countries have a set standard of 2:08:10 for men and 2:26:50 for women, which is also the Olympic qualifying standard. One of the athletes already close to this is Portugal’s Jesus Solange “I’m optimistic, my goal is to get to Paris. I feel good,” she added. Of course, it also depends on how many free places are left in individual countries, the quota is a maximum of three runners from one country.

Czech athletes Tereza Hrochová and Moira Stewartová, on the other hand, have met the standard, and will not participate in the race due to preparation for the Olympics. Among the Czech men at the start will be the defender of the victory from last year Vít Pavlišta, the experienced Jiří Homoláč or Ondřej Fejfar. Patrik Vebr, winner of the Prague Half Marathon 2024 and a member of the RunCzech Racing team, will make his marathon debut here. “The goal is to win the Czech title, but I have respect for this distance and would like to gain experience. For me, the 5 and 10 km races are still a priority,” added Vebr.