Chuncheon Marathon
Encyclopedia
The Chuncheon International Marathon is an annual marathon
race which is held in late October in the city of Chuncheon
, South Korea
. First held in 1946, it is the second oldest marathon in the country after the Seoul International Marathon
. Sponsored by The Chosun Ilbo
, a major daily newspaper in South Korea, the race is one of two in the country which holds IAAF Silver Label status, along with Gyeongju International Marathon
.
The 1936 Summer Olympics
saw two Koreans
win Olympic medals: Sohn Kee-chung
took the gold while Nam Sung-yong
was the bronze medallist. Both runners had competed in the colours of Japan
, as the competition took place when Korea
was part of the Japanese empire
. When Japan was defeated in World War II
, Korea was liberated and the first "Chosun Ilbo Shortened Marathon" was held the following year, building upon the newly free country's running
tradition. Suh Yun-bok
, a sports coach at Anyang Technical College
, won the first race and later took victory at the Boston Marathon
. The race was extended to the marathon distance for the next year and the event was held on the eleventh anniversary of Sohn's Olympic win.
The race was not held from 1950 to 1953 due to the Korean War
, but the annual competition has been uninterrupted since then. Marathon running became less popular in Korea in the 1960–70s and it was not until the 1980s that there was a resurgence of interest in the event, which saw women competing in the programme for the first time. Improving course times eventually resulted in Kim Wan-Ki's South Korean record
run of 2:11:02 to win in 1991. The national race turned into an international one in 1995 and top runners from Kenya
and Japan
became frequent participants.
Kim Wan-Ki's 1991 national and course record lasted only three years as Lee Bong-Ju
dipped under the two hours, ten minutes mark with a run of 2:09:59. Moses Tanui
became the first Kenyan winner in 1997 and knocked almost a minute off the record. This mark stood for thirteen years, at which point another Kenyan (Benjamin Kiptoo Kolum) took over a minute more off that time for the current men's course best of 2:07:54. That mark was beaten the following year by Stanley Biwott, who went 51 seconds faster. The women's record for the course is Kwon Eun-Ju's long-standing time of 2:26:12, which is also a South Korean record.
won in 1985 in around two hours seventeen minutes, while Kim Jae-Ryong
took the 1987 race in a time around three minutes faster than that.
Key:
Marathon
The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...
race which is held in late October in the city of Chuncheon
Chuncheon
Chuncheon is the capital of Gangwon Province, South Korea. The city lies in the northeast of the country, located in a basin formed by the Soyang River and Han River. There are some large lakes around the city, most notably Lake Soyang and Lake Uiam...
, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. First held in 1946, it is the second oldest marathon in the country after the Seoul International Marathon
Seoul International Marathon
The Seoul International Marathon, also known as the Dong-A Ilbo Seoul Marathon, is an annual marathon race that takes place in Seoul, South Korea. It is one of two annual races over the 42.195 km classic distance in the city, alongside the JoongAng Seoul Marathon which is held in November. It...
. Sponsored by The Chosun Ilbo
The Chosun Ilbo
The Chosun Ilbo is one of the major newspapers in South Korea. With a daily circulation of over 2,200,000, the Chosun Ilbo has undertaken annual inspections since Audit Bureau of Circulations was established in 1993...
, a major daily newspaper in South Korea, the race is one of two in the country which holds IAAF Silver Label status, along with Gyeongju International Marathon
Gyeongju International Marathon
The Gyeongju International Marathon is an annual road running event over the marathon distance which takes place in mid-October in Gyeongju, South Korea. It gained IAAF Silver Label Road Race status in 2010....
.
History
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
saw two Koreans
Korean people
The Korean people are an ethnic group originating in the Korean peninsula and Manchuria. Koreans are one of the most ethnically and linguistically homogeneous groups in the world.-Names:...
win Olympic medals: Sohn Kee-chung
Sohn Kee-chung
Sohn Kee-Chung became the first medal-winning Korean Olympian, when he won the gold medal in the marathon at the 1936 Berlin Olympics as a member of the Japanese delegation....
took the gold while Nam Sung-yong
Nam Sung-yong
Nam Sung-Yong was the bronze winner of the Marathon of the 1936 Summer Olympics, completing the run in 2 hours, 31 minutes, and 42 seconds. He is also the first Korean bronze Olympian....
was the bronze medallist. Both runners had competed in the colours of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, as the competition took place when Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
was part of the Japanese empire
Korea under Japanese rule
Korea was under Japanese rule as part of Japan's 35-year imperialist expansion . Japanese rule ended in 1945 shortly after the Japanese defeat in World War II....
. When Japan was defeated in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Korea was liberated and the first "Chosun Ilbo Shortened Marathon" was held the following year, building upon the newly free country's running
Running
Running is a means of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. It is simply defined in athletics terms as a gait in which at regular points during the running cycle both feet are off the ground...
tradition. Suh Yun-bok
Suh Yun-bok
Suh Yun-bok is a former South Korean athlete, who is best known as the winner of the 1947 Boston Marathon. He won the race with a world best time of 2:25:39 under the coach Sohn Kee-chung, the Korean winner of the marathon at the 1936 Berlin Olympics...
, a sports coach at Anyang Technical College
Anyang Technical College
Anyang Technical College, or Anyang Science University, is a college in Manan-gu, Anyang City, Gyeonggi province, South Korea. It opened its doors on March 15, 1977, as Anyang Industrial Technical School. It was officially designated a technical junior college in 1979...
, won the first race and later took victory at the Boston Marathon
Boston Marathon
The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon hosted by the U.S. city of Boston, Massachusetts, on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897 and inspired by the success of the first modern-day marathon competition in the 1896 Summer Olympics, the Boston Marathon is the world's oldest...
. The race was extended to the marathon distance for the next year and the event was held on the eleventh anniversary of Sohn's Olympic win.
The race was not held from 1950 to 1953 due to the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, but the annual competition has been uninterrupted since then. Marathon running became less popular in Korea in the 1960–70s and it was not until the 1980s that there was a resurgence of interest in the event, which saw women competing in the programme for the first time. Improving course times eventually resulted in Kim Wan-Ki's South Korean record
South Korean records in athletics
The following are the national records in athletics in South Korea maintained by the Korean Association of Athletics Federations .-Men:-Women:-Men:-Women:-External links:* *...
run of 2:11:02 to win in 1991. The national race turned into an international one in 1995 and top runners from Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
became frequent participants.
Course and records
The course overall is a relatively flat one, with small uphill and downhill sections coming around the 5-kilometre and 30-kilometre marks. The looped course starts near the city centre on the east bank and heads south, following the waterfront. It turns northwards at the 8 km mark as it reaches the city suburbs and traces along the west side of the river for a 20 km stretch. The course then crosses the river and heads back towards the finishing point in down-town Chuncheon.Kim Wan-Ki's 1991 national and course record lasted only three years as Lee Bong-Ju
Lee Bong-Ju
Lee Bong-Ju is a South Korean marathoner.He won the silver medal in the marathon at the 1996 Summer Olympics held in Atlanta, United States...
dipped under the two hours, ten minutes mark with a run of 2:09:59. Moses Tanui
Moses Tanui
Moses Tanui is a former Kenyan long-distance runner who won the gold medal over 10000 m at the 1991 World Championships in Athletics in Tokyo....
became the first Kenyan winner in 1997 and knocked almost a minute off the record. This mark stood for thirteen years, at which point another Kenyan (Benjamin Kiptoo Kolum) took over a minute more off that time for the current men's course best of 2:07:54. That mark was beaten the following year by Stanley Biwott, who went 51 seconds faster. The women's record for the course is Kwon Eun-Ju's long-standing time of 2:26:12, which is also a South Korean record.
National era
Not much is known of the early winners of the race. Suh Yun-bok won the first race in a time of 1:29:24 on a shortened course estimated to have been around 25 km in length. A university student, Hong Jong-Oh, won the second race, beating a field of 50 runners to complete Chuncheon's first true marathon in a time of 2:57:20. The next documented winner came from after the Korean War, as Lee Chang-Hoon won a shorter 20 km race in 1957. The next known winners after this come from the race's period of growth in the 1980s: Kim Won-TakKim Won-Tak
Kim Won-Tak is a South Korean long-distance runner who competed in the late 1980s. He was best known at the opening ceremonies of the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul of sharing the lighting of the Olympic Flame with fellow South Koreans Chung Sun-Man and Sohn Mi-Chung.Kim also competed in those same...
won in 1985 in around two hours seventeen minutes, while Kim Jae-Ryong
Kim Jae-Ryong
Kim Jae-Ryong is a retired South Korean long-distance runner who specialized in the marathon.-Achievements:-References:...
took the 1987 race in a time around three minutes faster than that.
Key:
| Edition | Year | Men's winner | Time (h Hour The hour is a unit of measurement of time. In modern usage, an hour comprises 60 minutes, or 3,600 seconds... :m Minute A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units... :s Second The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock.... ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 1946 | 1:29:24 | |
| 2nd | 1947 | 2:57:20 | |
| Race winners not known (1948–49) | |||
| Not held due to Korean War (1950–53) | |||
| Race winners not known(1953–1956) | |||
| 8th | 1957 | ? | |
| Race winners not known (1958–1984) | |||
| 36th | 1985 | 2:17 | |
| 37th | 1986 | Unknown | 2:15 |
| 38th | 1987 | 2:14 | |
| 39th | 1988 | Unknown | 2:13 |
| Race winners not known (1989–90) | |||
| 42nd | 1991 | 2:11:02 NR South Korean records in athletics The following are the national records in athletics in South Korea maintained by the Korean Association of Athletics Federations .-Men:-Women:-Men:-Women:-External links:* *... |
|
| 43rd | 1992 | 2:11:24 | |
| 44th | 1993 | 2:13:03 | |
| 45th | 1994 | 2:09:59 | |
International era
Key:| Edition | Year | Men's winner | Time (h Hour The hour is a unit of measurement of time. In modern usage, an hour comprises 60 minutes, or 3,600 seconds... :m Minute A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units... :s Second The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock.... ) |
Women's winner | Time (h Hour The hour is a unit of measurement of time. In modern usage, an hour comprises 60 minutes, or 3,600 seconds... :m Minute A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units... :s Second The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock.... ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46th | 1995 | 2:11:30 | 2:35:37 | ||
| 47th | 1996 | 2:14:02 | 2:37:54 | ||
| 48th | 1997 | 2:09:01 | 2:26:12 | ||
| 49th | 1998 | 2:18:21 | 2:38:03 | ||
| 50th | 1999 | 2:14:52 | 2:35:31 | ||
| 51st | 2000 | 2:13:57 | 2:37:02 | ||
| 52nd | 2001 | 2:15:32 | 2:31:33 | ||
| 53rd | 2002 | 2:16:49 | 2:34:05 | ||
| 54th | 2003 | 2:13:54 | 2:34:27 | ||
| 55th | 2004 | 2:14:31 | 2:35:59 | ||
| 56th | 2005 | 2:09:27 | 2:37:25 | ||
| 57th | 2006 | 2:13:46 | 2:36:04 | ||
| 58th | 2007 | 2:14:01 | 2:35:25 | ||
| 59th | 2008 | 2:19:01 | 2:44:35 | ||
| 60th | 2009 | 2:09:50 | 2:49:35 | ||
| 61st | 2010 | 2:07:54 | 2:43:39 | ||
| 62nd | 2011 | 2:07:03 | 2:41:23 |