43rd Istanbul Marathon to be held on Sunday

By Selcuk Bugra Gokalp

ANKARA (AA) - The 43rd Istanbul Marathon, a long-distance running race sponsored by N Kolay financial services and organized by Spor Istanbul, a subsidiary of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, will be held on Sunday.

The marathon, which is "the only intercontinental marathon in the world," will be held in three categories: 42.195 meters run, and 15 and 8 kilometers of public run.

A total of 40,000 people will participate in the public run categories, while 54 elite athletes will run in competition.

Those who finish first, second and third in men's and women's categories will get $35,000, $20,000 and $10,000, respectively.

The idea of running from Asia to Europe, which was first brought up by Tercuman Newspaper in 1973, was realized in 1979 with the initiative of a group of German tourists.

The Istanbul Marathon, which is included in the "Gold Label Road Races" of the World Athletics Association (IAAF), is among the most popular marathons in the world.