Sport | Marathon running |
---|---|
Founded | 2006 |
No. of teams | individual sport |
Official website | www |
The World Marathon Majors (WMM) (known for sponsorship reasons as the Abbott World Marathon Majors) is a championship-style competition for marathon runners that started in 2006. A points-based competition founded on six major marathon races recognised as the most high-profile on the calendar, the series comprises annual races for the cities of Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York. In addition, each edition of the series recognises and includes the results of the major global championship marathon held in that year, usually on a one-off lapped course. These races are the biennial World Athletics Championships Marathon, and the quadrennial Olympic Games Marathon. [1]
Each World Marathon Majors series originally spanned two full calendar years; the second year of a series overlapped with the first year of the next. Starting in 2015, each series began with a defined city race and ended with the following race in the same city. So, series IX started in February 2015 at the 2015 Tokyo Marathon and ended there in February 2016 at the 2016 Tokyo Marathon. Series X started at the 2016 Boston Marathon and finished at the 2017 Boston Marathon. Series XI started at the 2017 London Marathon and finished at the 2018 London Marathon.
It began being sponsored by Abbott Laboratories in 2015. [2] On April 26, 2017, Dalian Wanda Group Co., Ltd., one of the leading Chinese private conglomerates, announced a ten-year strategic partnership aimed at the continued growth and development of marathon events worldwide.
Beginning with Series X at the 2016 Boston Marathon, wheelchair competitions were added for men and women.
At the end of each of the first 10 WMM series the leading man and woman each won $500,000, making a total prize of one million U.S. dollars. Beginning with Series XI, the prize structure was revised so that for men and women first place became $250,000, second place $50,000 and third place $25,000. In the wheelchair division the prize money for men and women is $50,000 (first), $25,000 (second) and $10,000 (third).
Athletes who competed in the marathons originally received points for finishing in any of the top five places (1st place: 25 points; 2nd place: 15 points; 3rd place: 10 points; 4th place: 5 points; 5th place: 1 point). Their four highest ranks over the two-year period were counted; if an athlete scored points in more than this number, the athlete's four best races were scored. To be eligible for the jackpot, an athlete had to compete in at least one qualifying race in each calendar year of the series.
In 2015, the scoring was revised (1st place: 25 points; 2nd place: 16 points; 3rd place: 9 points; 4th place: 4 points; 5th place: 1 point). The two highest ranks during the scoring period would be counted, with only the best two if more than that number.
For the first three series if there were equal top scores at the end of the competition the tiebreakers were head-to-head competition and, if necessary, a majority vote of the five WMM race directors. This happened in the 2007–08 women's competition.
Beginning in 2009–10 season, following best head-to-head record, the following tie-breakers were implemented, in descending order: the person who achieved his or her points in the fewest races, the person who won the most qualifying races during the period, the person with the fastest average time in their scoring races, and a majority vote of the six-race directors. If the final circumstance is necessary, the race directors could award the title jointly.
The following marathons have been part of the series in each year:
The winners by season listed below. [11]
Season | No. | Start event | Final event | Winner | Country | Points | Notes | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016–17 | X | 2016 Boston | 2017 Boston | Marcel Hug | Switzerland | |||
2017–18 | XI | 2017 London | 2018 London | Marcel Hug (2) | Switzerland | |||
2018–19 | XII | 2018 Berlin | 2019 Berlin | Daniel Romanchuk | United States | |||
2019–21 | XIII | 2019 Chicago | 2021 New York City | Marcel Hug (3) | Switzerland | |||
2022 | XIV | 2021 Tokyo [lower-alpha 8] | 2022 New York City | Marcel Hug (4) | Switzerland | |||
Season | No. | Start event | Final event | Winner | Country | Points | Notes | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016–17 | X | 2016 Boston | 2017 Boston | Tatyana McFadden | United States | |||
2017–18 | XI | 2017 London | 2018 London | Manuela Schär | Switzerland | |||
2018–19 | XII | 2018 Berlin | 2019 Berlin | Manuela Schär (2) | Switzerland | |||
2019–21 | XIII | 2019 Chicago | 2021 New York City | Manuela Schär (3) | Switzerland | |||
2022 | XIV | 2021 Tokyo [lower-alpha 8] | 2022 New York City | Susannah Scaroni | United States | |||
Six star finishers are marathoners who have completed all 6 of the World Marathon Majors. In 2016 following the Tokyo Marathon a Six Star Finisher Medal was introduced [25] In July 2018 a "Reach for the Stars" campaign was launched wherein a runner could claim a star for each WMM race completed. The system allows runners to create a profile, search for their ‘stars’ and add them to their page. [26]
Following the WMM Series XI in April 2018, the verified total of Six Star Finishers was 3,786.
Eliud Kipchoge is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and formerly specialized in the 5000 metres. Regarded as one of the greatest marathon runners of all time, he is the 2016 and 2020 Olympic marathon champion, and was the world record holder in the marathon from 2018 to 2023, with a time of 2:01:09 set at the 2022 Berlin Marathon, until that record was broken by Kelvin Kiptum at the 2023 Chicago Marathon with a time of 2:00:35. He has run four of the 10 fastest marathons in history.
Edna Ngeringwony Kiplagat is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner. She was the 2011 and 2013 World Champion in the marathon. She established herself as an elite marathon runner with wins at the Los Angeles and New York City Marathons in 2010. Her personal best for the distance is 2:19:50 hours, set at the London Marathon in 2012. At age 37, Kiplagat won the 2017 Boston Marathon in a time of 2:21:52 hours, and won the marathon silver medal at the IAAF World Championships in London. At age 39, she was second at the 2019 Boston Marathon and fourth in the event at the following World Championships. At age 41, she won the 2021 Boston Marathon, becoming the oldest-ever winner of a World Marathon Major.
Bernard Kiprop Kipyego is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon. His personal best for the event is 2:06:22 hours. He has reached the podium at the Amsterdam Marathon, Chicago Marathon, Boston Marathon, Paris Marathon and Tokyo Marathon.
Irina Mikitenko, néeVolynskaya, is a retired German long-distance runner who competed in marathons. She won the Berlin Marathon in 2008 and is a two-time winner of the London Marathon. She has competed at the Summer Olympics on four occasions.
The 2011 London Marathon was the 31st running of the annual marathon race in London, England, which took place on Sunday, 17 April. The elite men's race was won by Kenya's Emmanuel Kipchirchir Mutai in a course record time of 2:04:40 hours and the elite women's race was won by Mary Jepkosgei Keitany, also of Kenya, in 2:19:19.
Dennis Kipruto Kimetto is a Kenyan long distance runner who competes in road running events. He was the world record holder in the men's marathon with a time of 2 hours 2 minutes 57 seconds, a record which he held until Eliud Kipchoge broke it in 2018 with a time of 2:01:39.
In 2014 there was no primary outdoor global athletics championship, as neither the Summer Olympics nor the World Championships in Athletics occurred in the year. The 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships, and the 2014 IAAF Continental Cup were the foremost global events to be held in 2014. The 2014 IAAF World Relays marked the debut of the new international competition exclusively for relay races.
The 2016 London Marathon was the 36th running of the annual marathon race in London, England, which took place on Sunday, 24 April. The men's elite race was won by Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge and the women's race was won by Kenyan Jemima Sumgong. The men's wheelchair race was won by Marcel Hug from Switzerland and the women's wheelchair race was won by American Tatyana McFadden.
The 2018 New York City Marathon was a marathon race held in New York City, United States, which took place on November 4, 2018. It was the 48th edition of the New York City Marathon, which is organised by New York Road Runners. The men's race was won by Lelisa Desisa, who held off a late challenge at the finish by Shura Kitata. The women's race was won by Mary Keitany, her fourth win of the event. Both Desisa and Keitany recorded the second fastest times on the course. In the wheelchair races, Daniel Romanchuk (1:36:21) and Switzerland's Manuela Schär (1:50:27) won the men's and women's races, respectively. A total of 52,704 runners finished the race, comprising 30,592 men and 22,112 women.
Shura Kitata Tola is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and half-marathon. He has raced in several World Marathon Majors, including the 2020 London Marathon, where he won the race in a time of 2:05:41, beating Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge, and the 2018 London Marathon where he finished in second place behind him. His other best performances include the 2017 Rome Marathon and 2017 Frankfurt Marathon victories and second places at the 2018 and 2022 New York City Marathon.
The 2019 London Marathon was the 39th running of the annual marathon race in London, United Kingdom, which took place on 28 April. The elite men's race was won by Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge, who took his fourth London Marathon victory in a time of 2:02:37, the second fastest marathon ever at that point. The women's race was won by Brigid Kosgei, also of Kenya, in 2:18:20. American Daniel Romanchuk won the men's wheelchair title in 1:33:38 while Switzerland's Manuela Schär won the women's title in 1:44:09. Changes were made to the course to make it more environmentally friendly; the number of plastic bottles used was reduced and biodegradable alternatives were used instead.
The men's marathon event at the 2020 Summer Olympics started at 07:00 on 8 August 2021 in Sapporo, Japan. 106 athletes from 46 nations competed. The previous Olympic champion, Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge, successfully defended his title, with Dutch and Belgian athletes Abdi Nageeye and Bashir Abdi gaining silver and bronze, respectively. Kipchoge was the third man to repeat as Olympic marathon champion, after Abebe Bikila and Waldemar Cierpinski. The Netherlands and Belgium earned their first men's marathon medals since 1980 and 1976, respectively.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused the most significant disruption to the worldwide sporting calendar since World War II. Across the world and to varying degrees, sports events were cancelled or postponed. The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo were rescheduled to 2021. At the time, spectators had no games to watch and players no games to play. Only a few countries and territories, such as Hong Kong, Turkmenistan, Belarus, and Nicaragua, continued professional sporting matches as planned.
The 2020 London Marathon was the 40th running of the annual marathon race in London, United Kingdom, which took place on 4 October 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the race was postponed from 26 April and only allowed elite participants; the mass participation event was cancelled. The event used a different course from usual, consisting of multiple laps around St James's Park.
The 2020 World Athletics Label Road Races are the thirteenth edition of the global series of road running competitions given Label status by World Athletics. The series included a range of road events which was affected due to the growing concern about the coronavirus pandemic including the World Marathon Majors events like the Tokyo marathon, the Boston Marathon and the London Marathon.
The 2021 Tokyo Marathon was the fifteenth edition of the annual marathon race in Tokyo. The competition was held on Sunday 6 March 2022, having been postponed twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The elite events were won by Kenyans Eliud Kipchoge and Brigid Kosgei respectively, whilst the wheelchair races were won by Swiss athlete Marcel Hug and Japanese competitor Tsubasa Kina. Around 20,000 people competed in the mass participation event.
The 2021 London Marathon was the 41st running of the annual London Marathon on 3 October 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the race was postponed from April until October to maximise the chances of a mass participation event.
The 2022 Berlin Marathon was the 48th edition of the annual marathon race in Berlin, which took place on Sunday, 25 September 2022. An Elite Platinum Label marathon, it was the first of four World Marathon Majors events to be held over the span of six weeks. 45,527 runners with 34,879 finishers from 157 countries have taken part in the event.
Due to postponement of the 2021 event, the 2022 event will not take place.