The Auckland Marathon and Half Marathon

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...

 is an annual marathon

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...

 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...

 race held in Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. The event is held in October, or early November of each year, which is during the spring in New Zealand. The main feature of the event is the crossing of the Auckland Harbour Bridge

Auckland Harbour Bridge

The Auckland Harbour Bridge is an eight-lane box truss motorway bridge over the Waitemata Harbour, joining St Marys Bay in Auckland with Northcote in North Shore City, New Zealand. The bridge is part of State Highway 1 and the Auckland Northern Motorway...

, which involves a climb of 33 metres to the highest point. The 2008 event took place on Sunday, 2 November 2008.

Course

The course begins in the seaside suburb of Devonport

Devonport, New Zealand

Devonport is a harbourside suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located on the North Shore, at the southern end of a peninsula that runs southeast from near Lake Pupuke in Takapuna, forming the northern side of the Waitemata Harbour...

 on the North Shore

North Shore, New Zealand

North Shore City was the name of a city that existed in the Auckland region of New Zealand from 1989 until 2010. The city had a population of making it the fourth most populous city in New Zealand prior to November 2010...

 and travels through Takapuna

Takapuna

Takapuna is a central, coastal suburb of North Shore City, located in the northern North Island of New Zealand, at the beginning of a south-east-facing peninsula forming the northern side of the Waitemata Harbour...

 and Northcote

Northcote, New Zealand

Northcote is a suburb of North Shore City, one of several cities in the Auckland metropolitan area in northern New Zealand. It is located on the north shore of the Waitemata Harbour, four kilometres northwest of the Auckland city centre....

 before crossing the Harbour Bridge and heading toward the finish at Victoria Park

Victoria Park, Auckland

Victoria Park is a park and sports ground in Auckland City, New Zealand. It lies on reclaimed bay land in Freemans Bay, a suburb directly west of the Auckland CBD. This origin of the land makes it very flat and level...

.

While the half marathon runners completed their race in Victoria Park, those competing in the full marathon continue eastward through Viaduct Harbour and along Tamaki drive to the turn-around point at Saint Heliers Bay

Saint Heliers, New Zealand

Saint Heliers is a residential Auckland City suburb, located at the eastern end of the city, where the Tamaki estuary divides it from Manukau City.This area was originally called Glen Orchard after Lieutenant-Colonel William Taylor's farm...

. The marathon then returns along Tamaki drive and back to Victoria Park.

History

The first Auckland Marathon was held in June 1936, using an Auckland waterfront course. The race did not become an annual event until the 1960s, or possibly until 1949,, or until 1992 if the Great Northern Marathon (Takanini) events are not regarded as the Auckland Marathon editions of 1989 to 1991, and it was not until October 1992 that the Harbour Bridge crossing was first used, becoming the first sports event to cross the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

In September 2006, the Auckland marathon course was officially measured by approved measurer Bob Braid. This means an athlete's time over the 2006 marathon course can be recognised to qualify for international events such as the World Championships in Athletics.

The 2006 event was held on 29 October, 2006. The first man to finish was Dale Warrander

Dale Warrander

Dale Warrander is a New Zealand long distance runner. He is arguably the best marathon runner in New Zealand with a personal best of 2:12.58 set in the Fukuoka Marathon of 2004....

, with a time of 2h 17m 43s. The first woman to finish was Tracey Clissold with a time of 2h 50m 47s.

The 2007 event was held on 28 October, 2007. The first man to finish was Matt Smith, with a time of 2h 20m 41s. The first woman to finish was Ady Ngawati with a time of 2h 49m 05s.

The 2008 event was held on 2 November, 2008. The first man to finish was Ben Ruthe, with a time of 2h 28m 11s. The first woman to finish was Ady Ngawati, with a time of 2h 46m 47s.