World marathon championships to break away from track meet starting in 2030

MONACO (AP) — The world championship marathon will be an annual separate event beginning in 2030, breaking with a decades-old tradition of running it as part of the full worlds track meet.

World Athletics said Tuesday that the race will continue to be held in odd-numbered years, same as the world championships, but at a different time and place.

There will also be a world marathon championship in even-numbered years, and the federation is negotiating with Athens to hold the first standalone world championship marathon in 2030.

World Athletics president Seb Coe called the move “an opportunity to create a dedicated global celebration of marathon running, held in a setting that honors its heritage while shaping a modern championship that reflects the scale and spirit of the global running community.”

World championships have not always drawn the best fields in distance running, where often the top runners focus on the sport’s majors in Boston, New York, London, Chicago, Tokyo and Berlin.

But the races can still be memorable. Seven years ago in Doha, the races started at midnight to avoid the heat; even so, it was sweltering, and 28 of the 68 entrants in the women’s race failed to finish.

At world championships in Tokyo last year, the men’s marathon was decided in a photo finish, with Alphonce Simbu of Tanzania nearly missing the turn into the stadium and then sprinting to edge out Amanal Petros.

A day earlier, Peres Jepchirchir won the women’s race by 0.2 seconds.

The marathon will be held at worlds in Beijing next year and in 2029.