6000 Athletes to run around Colombo

The 15th Colombo Marathon, organized by Lanka Sportreizen will commence on Sunday, the 4th of October at 06:00 am in close proximity to the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) (Bauddhaloka Mawatha / Longdon Place Colour Lights) with the participation of more than 6,000 athletes.
The race’s roots go way back to 1998, when Lanka Sportreizen, a pioneer in organizing international sporting events in the country, took up the challenge of organizing Sri Lanka’s first ever international Marathon. The race, which was then referred to as the LSR International Marathon, was conducted in the historic city of Galle. Upon successful completion of the event for five years, the organizers decided to change its name to The Colombo Marathon in 2006.

The event has the backing of many government organizations including the Ministry of Sports, the Athletic Association of Sri Lanka, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and is supported by Sri Lanka Airlines.

The 14th Colombo Marathon which was held last year saw the Kenyans dominate proceedings in both the men’s and women’s categories. In fact Kenyan runners swept the field in the Men’s race, securing all three medals on offer. Sri Lanka’s G.K.K.S. Thissa Gunawasekara was the top local athlete, finishing 4th overall. Meanwhile in the Women’s race W. Kwamboka of Kenya finshed first, but local girl B.G Niluka Rajasekara was able to secure the silver medal, establishing a new Sri Lankan record in the process.

This year’s event will see runners participate in 7 different categories with up to 2,500 US dollars up for grabs for the winners.

The race will begin in close proximity to the BMICH, with the Half Marathon finish line being at Pamunugama and the Full Marathon ending at the Negombo Beach Park. Currently over six thousand athletes from 39 Nations have registered for the race.