Martin Lange / Photo credit: Eric FEFERBERG / AFP
This Sunday, the 47th edition of the Paris marathon kicks off. With 54,000 participants from the four corners of the world, this race will break a new attendance record. At 8:15 a.m., the runners will set off from the Champs-Elysées for a 42.195 km course through the emblematic places of the capital.
It’s the big day for the runners of the Paris marathon! At 8:15 a.m. sharp, they will set off from the Champs-Elysées for a 42.195 km route through the emblematic places of the capital. And for this 47th edition, the Paris marathon will break a new participant record, with 54,000 participants from the four corners of the world.
“An incredible atmosphere”
“That’s a lot of people! A lot more than I thought!”, wonders Hamit, a New Yorker. For his first marathon, he preferred to run it here in Paris rather than at home. “It’s a beautiful city. I want to do my first marathon here. I watched the New York marathon this year and I want to run it obviously, but I think it’s better to start here,” he admits at the microphone of Europe 1. How to explain this success? For Bryan, also a novice, it is the capital and its heritage that attracts. “The Paris marathon is one of the best known. For the French side, the museum city, for the image. Paris is Paris,” explains the runner.
The Garnier Opera, Notre-Dame de Paris, the Eiffel Tower: the route is sumptuous and we never tire of it. “I did it in 2013 and we left for the Champs-Elysées with a view of the Concorde. The sun was rising, it was magnificent,” recalls Julien, two participations under the clock. There is also this enthusiasm and this crowd gathered along the barriers. “It’s really a marathon that I like because we’re at home, because my family can come and encourage me, my friends, my club. It’s really special, there’s an incredible atmosphere,” says Anaïs Quemener, French premiere last year. An explosive cocktail that continues to seduce. This year almost one in two participants is a rookie.