2023-04-20 17:30:10
Paris 2024 formalized the news in a press release this Thursday, April 20. The “marathon for all”, an unprecedented race scheduled for the last weekend of the Paris Olympic Games, will start on Saturday August 10, 2024 at 9 p.m. An equally new schedule for a long event of 42.195 km. In France, only the Bordeaux marathon (Gironde) adopted this night format until 2019.
As Le Parisien revealed on January 31, the 24,024 entered in the marathon for all (24,024 will also line up for a 10 km event) will therefore set off at nightfall from the forecourt of the Paris City Hall (4th arrondissement). The first will cross the finish line on the Esplanade des Invalides well before midnight.
“A wonderful adventure”
“Running the marathon for all at the Paris 2024 Games promises to be an absolutely incredible experience. On the night of August 10 to 11, 2024, the 40,048 runners who will have picked up their bibs will experience an exceptional new night experience, estimates Aurélie Merle, sports director of the organizing committee. If running a marathon was already an experience in itself, running on the same course as the Olympic athletes, the same day, in a magnificent setting and at night promises to be a formidable adventure for the 40,000 participants. »
Former tennis player Amélie Mauresmo should be there. “The marathon for all is a sporting challenge that motivates me enormously! Participating in this unique race is a dream. I’m already planning! », announces the winner of the Australian Open and Wimbledon 2006.
Health and safety reasons
The reasons for this nocturnal choice are diverse, but they are primarily dictated by safety and health measures for runners. In August, the temperature will be high in the capital (more than 30°C) and the organizers do not want to take any risks in the event of dehydration or discomfort.
The route which will make a round trip between Paris and Versailles is already sufficiently demanding, with 436 meters of elevation gain and a “wall” symbolized by the terrible slope of the road from the pavement of the Gardes de Chaville (Hauts-de-Seine) to the 31st kilometer, not to add difficulty.
When defining the route of this unprecedented marathon, the organizers relied on an event that marked the history of France: the women’s march on Versailles, October 5 and 6, 1789, which led to the ratification, by Louis XVI, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and hastened the king’s return to the capital.
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