3,500 foreigners to run in Vodafone Istanbul Marathon

By Fatih Erel

ISTANBUL (AA) - Around 30,000 professional runners including 3,500 foreigners from more than 100 countries will take part in the 40th Vodafone Istanbul Marathon in November.

This year's event -- the world's only transcontinental marathon from Asia to Europe -- will be held under the banner of "Run Istanbul For a Healthy Future" on Nov. 11.

The organization features a 42 kilometers (26 miles) marathon, and three other races on 15 km (9.3 miles), 10 km (6.2 miles), and 8 km (4.9 miles) courses. It will also include a plus a race for wheelchair-bound participants.

The marathon will start on the Asian side of Istanbul’s July 15 Martyrs’ Bridge, formerly known as the Bosphorus Bridge.

The participants will arrive the finish line at the historic Sultanahmet Square on the city’s European side.

Vodafone is the main sponsor of the race organized by Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and Spor Istanbul.

Last year, French Abraham Kiprotich won the men's category and in women's race Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich claimed the title.

For more information, the runners can check "www.maraton.istanbul" website and #runistanbul and #run4health hashtags on Twitter.