34th City 23rd April 2017 run vienna – enjoy classics

Vienna, 17th April 2017

Both course records under threat in Vienna

Both course records could be attacked at the on 23rd April. With deeper elite fields than in recent editions organisers hope to see fast winning times. Current course records stand at 2:05:41 and 2:23:47. With personal bests of 2:05:21 and 2:23:26 Kenya’s and Meseret Mengistu of Ethiopia are the fastest athletes on the start list. Arond 9,000 runners have entered the 34th edition of the Vienna City Marathon, which is an IAAF Gold Label Road Race. Adding other running events staged parallel to the marathon a total of more than 42,000 athletes have so far been registered. The Vienna City Marathon is ’s biggest sporting event. Late registration is only available for accompanying races on Saturday (22nd April), namely the new Vienna 10K race and kids runs. Information is available at: www.vienna-marathon.com

Nine runners with personal bests of sub 2:09 are currently on the men’s elite start list. Two of them have run under 2:06: Eliud Kiptanui clocked 2:05:21 in two years ago while Ethiopia’s Deribe Robi ran 2:05:58 in Eindhoven in 2015. Five more athletes feature personal records between 2:09 and 2:11. Among them is , also known as Vincent Toroitich, who ran a fine race at the Berlin recently. The Kenyan was entered as a pacemaker into the Berlin race but continued after his duties and finished with a PB of 60:32 in second position. A debutant could produce a surprise as well: Uganda’s Geoffrey Kusuro features a fine half marathon PB of 59:43. Among the contenders are two well-known runners: marathon world champion Luke Kibet, who took the Vienna title exactly ten years ago, and nine-time European cross country champion Sergey Lebid from Ukraine.

While of Ethiopia established the course record of 2:05:41 three years ago the women’s mark is much older. clocked 2:23:47 back in 2000. The record of the Italian has been targeted a number of times in the past editions of the Vienna City Marathon but somehow always survived. This year’s elite race start list suggests that the mark could finally go.

Half a dozen women have been entered who have already run under 2:26:30. Meseret Mengistu is the fastest on the start list: Two years ago the Ethiopian won the with 2:23:26. „In better weather conditions I could have run 2:22 today,“ said Shuko Genemo, when she took the Vienna City Marathon a year ago in very windy conditions. The Ethiopian clocked her PB of 2:24:31 in that race and now returns to Vienna as the defending champion. Running her debut Angela Tanui looks to have the potential to make an immediate impact over the classic distance. The Kenyan ran five half in a row with sub 70 minutes’ results. While her personal record stands at 67:16 from 2016 she recently was second in the Rome Ostia race with 67:43.

34th Vienna City Marathon 23rd April 2017 run vienna – enjoy classics

Selected elite runners with personal bests

Men: Eliud Kiptanui KEN 2:05:21 Deribe Robi ETH 2:05:58 Mustapha El Aziz MAR 2:07:55 Ishmael Bushendich KEN 2:08:20 Sergey Lebid UKR 2:08:32 Suleiman Simotwo KEN 2:08:49 Luke Kibet KEN 2:08:52 Silas Limo KEN 2:08:54 Ezekiel Omullo KEN 2:08:55 Alfonce Kigen KEN 2:09:47 Albert Korir KEN 2:10:08 Dereje Abera ETH 2:10:19 Paulo Paula BRA 2:10:23 Vincent Kipchumba KEN 2:10.32 Regasa Mindaye ETH 2:11:21 Geoffrey Kusuro UGA Debut

Women: Meseret Mengistu ETH 2:23:26 Shuko Genemo ETH 2:24:31 KEN 2:25:13 Rebecca Chesire KEN 2:25:22 NAM 2:26:09 Roza Dereje ETH 2:26:18 Tizita Terecha ETH 2:28:02 Emma Quaglia ITA 2:28:15 Irene Chepkirui KEN 2:31:55 Angela Tanui KEN Debut

34th Vienna City Marathon

Sunday, 23rd April 2017 Marathon | 42.195 km (IAAF Gold Label Road Race) Half marathon | 21.0975 km Relay marathon | teams of four runners share the marathon distance

Saturday, 22nd April 2017 New: Vienna 10K, incl. Austrian Championships Get active 4.2 | for young runners born 1999 to 2005 Get active 2.0 | for young runners born 2005 to 2011

Carbo Loading Party: Kaiserschmarrn & Pasta in the grand ball room of the Vienna City Hall

Friday, 21st and Saturday, 22nd April 2017 Expo „Vienna Sports World“, Messe Wien, Halle D www.vienna-marathon.com