Prague Half Marathon
Encyclopedia
The Prague Half Marathon is an annual half marathon
road running
event which takes place in Spring on the city streets of Prague
, Czech Republic
. Known as the Hervis Prague Half Marathon for sponsorship reasons, it holds IAAF Gold Label Road Race status, making it the foremost race of its type in the country. It is managed by the same organisation that holds the Prague Marathon in May.
The Prague Half Marathon has a looped course format which has its race start and end point on Jan Palach Square
near the Rudolfinum
. The course follows the Vltava
river southwards and then makes an east-to-west loop passing Folimanka park. It crosses to the west side of the Vltava, heading over Palacky Bridge, and after heading south along Strakonická road it doubles back to follow the river north, before crossing Legií Bridge to reach the halfway point. The course traces a large loop into the northern part of the city centre before returning to the Rudolfinum for the finish point.
The competition has enjoyed an increasing level of participation, with around 6500 participants in 2009 and almost 8500 runners taking part in the 2010 event. Since 2006, a corporate team half marathon relay event has also featured on the day's programme of events – each company being represented by four runners each covering equal legs of 5.27 km. Around 100 teams and 50 business and institutions were present for the first race.
In the elite level half marathon races, Kenya
n athletes have been dominant – all but one of the men's winners come from the East Africa
n country, which has also provided over half the female race winners. No man has ever topped the podium on two occasions, but both Jana Klimešová and Rose Kosgei have taken back-to-back wins in the women's event.
Philemon Limo
holds the men's course record of 59:30 minutes, while Lydia Cheromei
's mark of 67:33 minutes is the best achieved by a woman in the Prague race. Both of these marks were set in 2011 and are the fastest times ever run in the Czech Republic for the half marathon.
Key:
Half marathon
A half marathon is a road running event of . It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently. One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a...
road running
Road running
Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road . These events would be classified as long distance according to athletics terminology, with distances typically ranging from 5 kilometers to 42.2 kilometers in the marathon. They may involve large numbers of runners...
event which takes place in Spring on the city streets of Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
. Known as the Hervis Prague Half Marathon for sponsorship reasons, it holds IAAF Gold Label Road Race status, making it the foremost race of its type in the country. It is managed by the same organisation that holds the Prague Marathon in May.
The Prague Half Marathon has a looped course format which has its race start and end point on Jan Palach Square
Jan Palach Square
Jan Palach Square is a town square in the Old Town of Prague. It is located on right bank of the Vltava River next to the former Jewish Quarter. Unlike other squares in the Old Town, Jan Palach Square was created at the end of 19th century, making it one of the newest ones.-Buildings and...
near the Rudolfinum
Rudolfinum
The Rudolfinum is a music auditorium in Prague, Czech Republic. It is designed in the neo-renaissance style and is situated on Jan Palach Square on the bank of the river Vltava.-Overview:...
. The course follows the Vltava
Vltava
The Vltava is the longest river in the Czech Republic, running north from its source in Šumava through Český Krumlov, České Budějovice, and Prague, merging with the Elbe at Mělník...
river southwards and then makes an east-to-west loop passing Folimanka park. It crosses to the west side of the Vltava, heading over Palacky Bridge, and after heading south along Strakonická road it doubles back to follow the river north, before crossing Legií Bridge to reach the halfway point. The course traces a large loop into the northern part of the city centre before returning to the Rudolfinum for the finish point.
The competition has enjoyed an increasing level of participation, with around 6500 participants in 2009 and almost 8500 runners taking part in the 2010 event. Since 2006, a corporate team half marathon relay event has also featured on the day's programme of events – each company being represented by four runners each covering equal legs of 5.27 km. Around 100 teams and 50 business and institutions were present for the first race.
In the elite level half marathon races, 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...
n athletes have been dominant – all but one of the men's winners come from the East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
n country, which has also provided over half the female race winners. No man has ever topped the podium on two occasions, but both Jana Klimešová and Rose Kosgei have taken back-to-back wins in the women's event.
Philemon Limo
Philemon Limo
Philemon Kimeli Limo is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in cross country running and road running competitions....
holds the men's course record of 59:30 minutes, while Lydia Cheromei
Lydia Cheromei
Lydia Cheromei is a Kenyan athlete. She specializes in long distance running. She rose to fame at the age of thirteen with a win in the junior race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships...
's mark of 67:33 minutes is the best achieved by a woman in the Prague race. Both of these marks were set in 2011 and are the fastest times ever run in the Czech Republic for the half marathon.
Past winners
| 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.... ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 59:30 | 1:07:33 | ||
| 2010 | 1:00:09 | 1:09:57 | ||
| 2009 | 1:00:07 | 1:09:03 | ||
| 2008 | 1:02:08 | 1:12:00 | ||
| 2007 | 1:01:00 | 1:11:14 | ||
| 2006 | 1:01:15 | 1:10:08 | ||
| 2005 | 1:01:07 | 1:12:49 | ||
| 2004 | 1:01:46 | 1:10:38 | ||
| 2003 | 1:02:47 | 1:11:03 | ||
| 2002 | 1:02:15 | 1:12:06 | ||
| 2001 | 1:02:09 | 1:12:51 | ||
| 2000 | 1:03:28 | 1:14:17 | ||
| 1999 | 1:04:48 | 1:15:39 |