Press releases

MINSK, 31 August (BelTA) - Athletes from Ethiopia and Kenya are expected to take part in the 2017 Minsk Half Marathon, Chairman of the Belarusian Athletics Federation Vadim Devyatovsky told the media on 31 August, BelTA has learned.

“The forthcoming sport forum will feature the best runners from Ethiopia and Kenya. This will make the event even more interesting and more competitive. Two-time winner of the Minsk Half Marathon Olga Mazurenok of Belarus will not take part in the event due to health issues. Toeing the starting line will be Belarus’ best runners such as Marina Domantsevich, Anastasia Ivanova, and Nina Savina who finished second last time. The competition in the women’s part of the forum will be high,” noted Vadim Devyatovsky.

The organizers predict record numbers of participants at the 2017 Minsk Half Marathon. “Applications are open. In 2016, 6,000 amateur athletes confirmed participation nine days before the start. Today we already have about 12,000 people registered. I think we will surpass 30,000, the number announced earlier,” Vadim Devyatovsky said.

According to the chairman of the Belarusian Athletics Federation, the number of foreign athletes will considerably increase. “Taking part in the last year’s forum was a big number of Lithuanians. This year we see a big number of Russian runners eager to take part in the marathon. A total of 730 Russians have registered so far,” he noted. The 2017 Minsk Half Marathon has got the IAAF Bronze Label.

The 2017 Minsk Half Marathon medals were showcased at the meeting.

The Minsk Half Marathon will take place on 10 September. All the participants will be invited to a 5.5km, 10km and 21.1km races. The prize money of the event will make up more than $27,000. The winner will get $6,000. Special prizes are envisaged as well.

Everyone can register for the half marathon at the website minskhalfmarathon.by before 8 September inclusively.

Registration is free for people with disabilities. School and university students, pensioners, Chernobyl liquidators are exempted from paying fees for the 5.5km race.

Under the IAAF rules, the starting time for the 5.5km, 10km and 21.1km races will be different this year. The route of the 5.5km race will be slightly changed. It will start near the Palace of Sports and will go through Lenina Street, Nezavisimosti Avenue, Yanka Kupala Street, Storozhevskaya Street, Masherov Avenue and Pobeditelei Avenue.

The Minsk Half Marathon will be held for the third time in 2017. Some 16,000 people from 36 countries took part in the event in 2015. The number of participants increased to 20,000 in 2016.