If you wish to download the Race Manual file please click here

In order for someone to participate in the Marathon Race or Power Walking, he/she should be at least 18 years old (born at least in 2001).

BEFORE THE RACE

Before leaving your residence, make sure you have with you the following:

• Bib number and safety pins (timing chip is embedded on the bib number),

• Kit plastic bag with the bib number's sticker to be stamped on.

TRANSPORTATION OF RUNNERS AND POWER WALKERS TO THE START

Buses that will be departing constantly from six (6) different points within the Athens Center, from 05.30AM up to 06.45AM will be used by the ATHENS MARATHON Organizing Committee for the (direct and without any stop) transfer of all runners participating in the Marathon Race and Power Walking to the Marathon Start area. After 06.45AM, it will no longer be possible for late runners to use our transportation system and they need to take care of their own transfer to the Marathon Start area, by their own means.

Please Note: The last departure from “SYGGROU – FIX” Metro Station will be at 06.15AM.

DEPARTURE STATIONS:
Metro Station (Line 2) «Syngrou-Fix», along   Syngrou   Avenue  - Last  bus  to depart at 06.15  –  boarding from “Syngrou” exit
Metro Station (Line 2) «Panepistimio», along  Panepistimiou  street  – boarding at “Panepistimio” exit
Metro Station (Line 2 & 3) «Syntagma», along  Vas.  Amalias  Avenue  –  boarding from both sides of the platform
Metro Station (Line 1 & 2) «Omonoia», - boarding from 3rd Septemvriou Avenue
Metro Station (Line 3) «Evangelismos», along Vas. Sofias Avenue
Metro Station (Line 3) «Katechaki»,  along Mesogeion Avenue

Runners are advised not to use own means of transportation. However, if you wish to go to the Marathon Start area by private car, you should be there at least one hour before the start, that is by 08:00 the latest. Note that vehicle circulation will not be allowed on Marathonas Avenue as of 08:00am

WARM UP

Runners may warm up within the Marathon Stadium as well as in the area behind the Start Line (not in front of it).

CLOTHING MANAGEMENT

The participants need to put their clothes and other personal belongings in the kit plastic bag they have collected along with their bib number from the Registration Centre at the Faliro Indoor Hall & Exhibition Centre.

ATTENTION: All kit bags need to have on them the sticker with the runner's bib number. All bags should be well closed. Please make sure that your kit bag does not contain any travel documents, jewelry, money or medicines. The Athens Marathon Organising Committee bears no responsibility in case of loss or damage of any valuable items in the kit bags.

ATTENTION: No other bags, backpacks, etc, than the kit bags provided to the runners by the Organising Committee may be accepted.

Runners must give the kit plastic bag with their personal belongings and clothes to the volunteers at the DHL trucks located 100m before the Start Arch (traffic lights), no later than 40 minutes before the start of the race (8:20 the latest), in order to be taken to the Panathenaic Stadium. Volunteers will be there to assist the runners, while there will be signs indicating the specific DHL truck that corresponds to their own bib number.

Kit bags are put in the DHL trucks on the basis of the bib number. All trucks have signs with the relevant bib numbers.

Due to the large number of participants and the difficulties in moving towards the venue exit in order to give their personal kit bags, all runners should follow the instructions below:

(a) give their kit bag to the appropriate DHL truck just after they arrive at the Start area. The kit bag will be picked up after the race outside the Panathenaic Stadium,
(b) keep with them only the absolutely necessary clothes (t-shirt or other), mainly those they will be needing while waiting for the race to start,
(c) avoid changing clothes before the venue entrance and in the area where DHL trucks are parked,
(d) put on the specific "warming cover" that will be distributed by the Organizing Committee staff, upon arrival at the Start area,
(e) leave aside clothes that they will have kept with them a few minutes before the start. Those clothes will be picked up by the volunteers of the Organizing Committee and will be given away for charity purposes.

After the race, runners may collect the kit bag with their personal belongings from a specified area on Vas. Olgas Avenue, 200 meters on the right after the exit from the Propylaea of Panathenaic Stadium, assisted by volunteers. Runners must present their bib number in order to collect their kit bags.

STARTING BLOCKS

All runners need to take their place in their starting block, according to the color of their bib number at least 15 minutes before the start of the race. There will be elevel different starting blocks. Your starting block is mentioned on your bib number

Please note that runners are allocated in starting blocks based on their personal best finish time over the last three years (2017-2019), as stated on their entry form. Runners who have not stated their best finish time on their entry form will be placed in one of the last two starting blocks.

If you consider it appropriate, you may put on the specific "warming cover" given to you by the Organizing Commitee while you are waiting for the start of your own block.

RACE START

A “Wave Start System” will be implemented and twelve (12) different wave starts are planned for twelve (12) different starting blocks.

All participants are kindly requested to follow the instructions of the Organising Committee staff and volunteers.

Please note that any runner to start the race from a different block than the designated one will be automatically disqualified and, consequently, his/her finish time will not appear in the Final Results.

DURING THE RACE

KILOMETRE SIGNS

There are kilometer (km) indexes at every kilometer of the course.

TOILETS – WCs

WC facilities are available at the start and the finish area, as well as at all feed stations along the course.

MEDICAL SERVICES

The Organising Committee is responsible for providing medical service to the runners. The National Centre of Immediate Help provides medical services along the course as well as at the Start and Finish of the race. An ambulance will be following the last group of runners throughout the course. Medical Volunteers and Paramedics will be along the course to offer first aid and to inform accordingly the medical personnel responsible for the event.

PERSONAL DRINKS

You are kindly reminded that there is no “personal drinks” service at the feed stations. This service is only provided to the elite athletes and the participants in the National Hellenic Marathon Race Championships.

FEED ZONES

Runners are kindly requested to throw water and Powerade bottles, lids, sponges, etc, in the recycling bins found at all feed stations and always on the right side of the road so that they do not prove dangerous for the runners to follow. For your own convenience, you are asked to spread out beyond the first table at each feed station. There are more tables in each feed station going up to 100m long. By throwing the plastic water bottles  in the recycling bins, you help to minimize the ecological footprint of the event.

SLOW RUNNERS

An 8-hours time limit has been set for the Marathon Race and Power Walking participants to reach the finish line. In case a participant has not reached the finish line by that time (see Time Limit section below), he/she needs to stop and will be taken to the Finish by vehicles of the Organizing Committee. In case he/she decides to go on at his/her own responsibility, he/she need to move on the pavement and continue his/her effort. This measure is taken in order to ensure the safety of all participants. When the time limit (see below) expires, Police will partially allow vehicles circulation. All runners must follow these instructions.

RUNNERS WHO DROP OUT

The last group of runners is followed by a bus, which picks up all the participants who cannot or do not wish to finish the race. If, for any reason, a runner chooses to drop out, he/she must walk to the closest feed station or get in contact with a staff member or volunteer of the Organizing Committee at any point of the course. In case no medical assistance is required, the runner may: a) remain on site and wait for any authorized vehicle of the Organizing Committee to pick him/her up and take him/her to the Finish, b) remain on site and wait for the bus that follows the last group of runners and picks up those who drop out, c) proceed to the finish line at his/her own responsibility.

TIME LIMIT FOR THE CONCLUSION OF THE EVENT

Both the Marathon Race and Power Walking end at 17.40.

Runners who wish to continue running beyond the time limits (see below) need to bear in mind that they are running at their own risk. Police will gradually allow vehicles on the streets after the last runner passes each feed station within the set time limit.

ELECTRONIC TIMING

All runners will receive a timing chip from the Registration Center at the Faliro Indoor Hall & Exhibition Centre embedded on their bib number. By its use, runners will be registered in the official results and will be informed about their split times. Split timing zones are installed at every 5 kilometres and at 21.1km. Any runner for whom no time is shown at the Start, the split timing zones and the Finish, will be disqualified.

The timing chip along with the bib number indicate the athlete’s identity and starting block in the electronic system.

Only athletes who: a) participate in accordance to the rules, b) are placed in the right starting block, c) have timing indications at the Start, all split timing zones and the Finish, and d) complete the race within the time limit (8 hours) will have their final and split times appearing in the Official Results and get a participation certificate.

CHRONOMETERS

A vehicle with a big digital chronometer will be moving in front of the leading group of runners. There will also be a digital chronometer at the finish line.

RULES AND FAIR PLAY

Observance of the rules and regulations set by the International Athletics Association Federations (IAAF), the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) and the Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS), is substantial for the safe and fair participation of all runners in this mass sport event.

Ffair play and noble competition characterize the Athens Marathon, therefore, mutual understanding and support among the participants are essential in promoting the Olympic and sports ideals. Everyone should respect his/her co-runners and try not to block their way and the flow of the race.

In case of non following the above rules, the event's judges as well as the Organizing Committee staff may exclude runners from the Final Results, evaluating electronic and audio visual material.

ATTENTION: The participation of athletes with handcycles, other competition wheelchairs, skates, skateboards, bicycles or accompanied by a dog is not allowed in the Athens Marathon. Due to the particularities of the Marathon course, the large number of participating athletes, the existing infrastructure and the event's operations for the staging of 54 different races on the same day (either in the city centre of Athens or along the Marathon course), the Organizing Committee cannot ensure safety of runners in such cases.

POWER WALKING SPECIFIC RULES

The same rules apply for participants in Power Walking, with the following specifications:

1. Participants in Power Walking are allocated in the last starting block, to start at 09:37am. Starting from a different block than the appointed one will result to the disqualification of the participant.

2. The time limit to conclude the race is set at 17:40 (eight hours after the start).

3. There will be no winners or specific results classification for the participants in Power Walking.

ACCESS TO THE RACE ROUTE – MARATHON RACE ATTENDANCE

All race routes will be free of vehicles. It is strictly prohibited for anyone (spectators, coaches, etc.) other than runners to move on all race lanes, in any type of vehicle. Parallel street lanes will also be free of traffic and dedicated to the vehicles accredited by the Organizing Committee (ambulances, police vehicles, etc.). All spectators are kindly requested to use public transport (Metro and buses outside the race routes), as indicated in the maps. No escorting of runners in bicycles is allowed.

The presence of accompanying persons in any of the street lanes, failure to demonstrate a valid accreditation pass or disobedience to the police orders will lead to their expulsion from the race route and the disqualification of the athletes they escort.

AT THE FINISH AND AFTERWARDS

Participation without bib number is not permitted. Runners who do not have a bib number will not be allowed to enter Panathenaic Stadium. Furthermore, participation in the race and finish in the Panathenaic Stadium to runners with dogs is also forbidden.

FINISHING THE RACE

All runners entering the finish area in the Panathenaic Stadium need to follow the route marked by cones and indicated by judges and volunteers. Runners who enter Panathenaic Stadium have to run the last 170m of the race inside the Stadium.

POST RACE PROCEDURES & SERVICES

Runners who cross the finish line need to keep walking. If any of the participants needs medical assistance, medical staff will be at the Finish to offer first aid services. Right after the Finish, all runners are given a finishers' medal and are asked to move towards the exit using the ramp next to the entrance gate that leads to the Propylaea of the Stadium.

Outside the Stadium, participants will be offered water, isotonic drinks, refresments, bananas, fitness bars, black chocolate. All participants may collect their clothes and personal belongings from the relevant DHL trucks. Runners may pick up their kit bags by presenting their bib number.

ACCESS TO THE FINISH AREA

Access to the main arena of the Panathenaic Stadium is allowed only to the finishing runners having a bib number and the staff of the Organizing Committee with specific credentials on their accreditation. Friends, family members and coaches may access the designated spectators' area (stands), and should not try to enter the track area, as this will result in congestion and cause inconvenience to the runners exiting the Stadium and the staff of the Organizing Committee who is trying to assist the runners. In addition, it is prohibited for anyone to enter the Panathenaic Stadium with any type of vehicle or wheeled equipment (skates, bicycle, etc.). Runners must inform their friends and family members about these regulations.

AWARDS

Winners Medals and certificates are awarded to the first three Men and Women of General Ranking as well as to the winners of the National Hellenic Marathon Race Championships.

RESULTS & PARTICIPATION CERTIFICATES

The finish times of the runners are announced in our website throughout the race. After the end of the race, the official results for the first 20 runners are immediately announced. The unofficial results for the rest of the participants are announced a few hours after the end of the race. Runners will have the opportunity to submit an appeal within the next five (5) calendar days. The official results for all categories will be announced about ten (10) working days after the race. All runners may get their participation certificate through the official website of the event a few days later (www.athensauthenticmarathon.gr).

PHOTO SERVICES

Photo services are provided by the world-known photo agency Marathon-Photos.com. All participants will be able to download and purchase their photos a few hours after the event from the website: www.marathon-photos.com.

TV BROADCASTING

The Marathon Race is broadcasted live by Public Television.