Roma-Ostia Half Marathon
Encyclopedia
The Roma-Ostia Half Marathon is an annual half marathon
road running
event which takes place in late February in Rome
, Italy
. The course begins in the EUR district of the city and follows a direct south-easterly route to the finish point near the beaches of Ostia. It is Italy's most popular half marathon, with a record 12,000 entries and 9,485 finishers in 2011.
The competition is organised by the Gruppo Sportivo Bancari Romani and comprises three distinct races. There is an elite level race for male and female athletes, a popular fun run
for amateurs, and a "Business Run" which sees teams of runners represent domestic companies in the Campionato Italian Imprenditori di Mezza Maratona (Italian Business Championships in the Half Marathon). The Roma-Ostia race has been held every year since its inception, with the exceptions of 1982 and 1999.
The race was inaugurated in March 1974 and was held on a 28-kilometre course. In its first dozen editions, the Roma-Ostia ranged from a distance of 27 km to 30 km. It was converted into an official half marathon race of 21.1 km for the 1987 edition and has remained so ever since. The course has a point-to-point format and as a result it some editions have had an overall downhill drop, as well as athlete-assisting tailwinds
. Due to these factors, some performances have been ineligible for personal bests or records.
In 2011 the course was significantly altered, allowing for faster times and record performances. Both the men's and women's course records were set in 2011. Tujuba Beyu's time of 59:58 minutes stands as the first sub-60 minute run of the race and the men's course record, while Anna Incerti
's run of 1:09:06 is the current record for females.
Past winners of the elite race include Stefano Baldini
(the 2004 Olympic marathon
champion), four-time Boston Marathon
winner Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot
, Franca Fiacconi
(1998 New York Marathon winner) and Mediterranean champion Souad Aït Salem
.
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 late February in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The course begins in the EUR district of the city and follows a direct south-easterly route to the finish point near the beaches of Ostia. It is Italy's most popular half marathon, with a record 12,000 entries and 9,485 finishers in 2011.
The competition is organised by the Gruppo Sportivo Bancari Romani and comprises three distinct races. There is an elite level race for male and female athletes, a popular fun run
Fun run
A fun run is a friendly race that involves either road running or cross country running with participants taking part for their own enjoyment rather than competition. A fun run will usually be held to raise funds for a charity, with sponsors providing the revenue to cover organisational costs...
for amateurs, and a "Business Run" which sees teams of runners represent domestic companies in the Campionato Italian Imprenditori di Mezza Maratona (Italian Business Championships in the Half Marathon). The Roma-Ostia race has been held every year since its inception, with the exceptions of 1982 and 1999.
The race was inaugurated in March 1974 and was held on a 28-kilometre course. In its first dozen editions, the Roma-Ostia ranged from a distance of 27 km to 30 km. It was converted into an official half marathon race of 21.1 km for the 1987 edition and has remained so ever since. The course has a point-to-point format and as a result it some editions have had an overall downhill drop, as well as athlete-assisting tailwinds
Wind assistance
Wind assistance is a term in track and field, which refers to the wind level during a race or event as registered by a wind gauge. Wind is one of many forms of weather which can affect sport....
. Due to these factors, some performances have been ineligible for personal bests or records.
In 2011 the course was significantly altered, allowing for faster times and record performances. Both the men's and women's course records were set in 2011. Tujuba Beyu's time of 59:58 minutes stands as the first sub-60 minute run of the race and the men's course record, while Anna Incerti
Anna Incerti
Anna Carmela Incerti is an Italian long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon. She has represented Italy in the marathon at European, World and Olympic-level...
's run of 1:09:06 is the current record for females.
Past winners of the elite race include Stefano Baldini
Stefano Baldini
Stefano Baldini is a retired Italian athlete and the 2004 Olympic and former European champion in the marathon....
(the 2004 Olympic marathon
Athletics at the Summer Olympics
Athletics has been contested at every Summer Olympics since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics. The athletics program traces its earliest roots to events used in the ancient Greek Olympics. The modern program now comprises track and field events, road running...
champion), four-time Boston Marathon
Boston Marathon
The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon hosted by the U.S. city of Boston, Massachusetts, on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897 and inspired by the success of the first modern-day marathon competition in the 1896 Summer Olympics, the Boston Marathon is the world's oldest...
winner Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot
Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot
Robert "Mwafrika" Kipkoech Cheruiyot , sometimes known as Omar Ahmed, is a Kenyan marathon runner and is the former record holder and four-time winner of the Boston Marathon.- Early career :...
, Franca Fiacconi
Franca Fiacconi
Franca Fiacconi is a long-distance runner from Italy. She won the 1998 New York City Marathon after finishing second in 1996 and third in 1997. She also won the 2001 Enschede Marathon...
(1998 New York Marathon winner) and Mediterranean champion Souad Aït Salem
Souad Aït Salem
Souad Aït Salem is an Algerian long-distance runner who specializes mainly in the half marathon and marathon. She was born in Mecheria. She won gold in the 10,000 metres at the 2000 African Championships in Athletics and the 2005 Mediterranean Games. Salem also won the gold in the half marathon at...
.
Past winners
| Edition | 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.... ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | 1974 | 1:28:54 | 2:05:59 | ||
| II | 1975 | 1:29:46 | 2:07:23 | ||
| III | 1976 | 1:27:55 | 2:06:43 | ||
| IV | 1977 | 1:27:42 | 2:05:38 | ||
| V | 1978 | 1:31:47 | 2:07:17 | ||
| VI | 1979 | 1:27:10 | 2:07:55 | ||
| VII | 1980 | 1:34:01 | 2:11:46 | ||
| VIII | 1981 | 1:21:20 | 1:42:06 | ||
| — | 1982 | Cancelled | |||
| IX | 1983 | 1:24:30 | 1:38:53 | ||
| X | 1984 | 1:25:04 | 1:40:56 | ||
| XI | 1985 | 1:26:25 | 1:43:13 | ||
| XII | 1986 | 1:34:13 | 1:50:13 | ||
| XIII | 1987 | 1:02:12 | 1:14:32 | ||
| XIV | 1988 | 1:04:32 | 1:15:02 | ||
| XV | 1989 | 1:02:10 | 1:14:35 | ||
| XVI | 1990 | 1:01:44 | 1:14:56 | ||
| XVII | 1991 | 1:02:34 | 1:13:02 | ||
| XVIII | 1992 | 1:02:18 | 1:12:12 | ||
| XIX | 1993 | 1:02:23 | 1:12:34 | ||
| XX | 1994 | 1:02:27 | 1:14:59 | ||
| XXI | 1995 | 1:02:53 | 1:11:36 | ||
| XXII | 1996 | 1:01:53 | 1:13:07 | ||
| XXIII | 1997 | 1:00:56 | 1:12:50 | ||
| XXIV | 1998 | 1:02:23 | 1:13:19 | ||
| — | 1999 | Not held | |||
| XXV | 2000 | 1:01:19 | 1:11:07 | ||
| XXVI | 2001 | 1:02:24 | 1:11:29 | ||
| XXVII | 2002 | 1:00:06 | 1:11:31 | ||
| XXVIII | 2003 | 1:01:13 | 1:09:25 | ||
| XXIX | 2004 | 1:00:22 | 1:10:39 | ||
| XXX | 2005 | 1:00:45 | 1:09:34 | ||
| XXXI | 2006 | 1:00:12 | 1:10:43 | ||
| XXXII | 2007 | 1:00:18 | 1:10:29 | ||
| XXXIII | 2008 | 1:00:19 | 1:09:15 | ||
| XXXIV | 2009 | 1:00:59 | 1:09:24 | ||
| XV | 2010 | 1:01:51 | 1:10:34 | ||
| XVI | 2011 | 59:58 | 1:09:06 | ||