Bangkok Marathon Explained

Bgcolour:	7e2a06
Location:	Bangkok, Thailand
Type:	Road
Distance:	Marathon, half marathon
Record:	Men: 2:16:10 (2010) Kennedy Lilan Women: 2:41:37 (2012) Elizabeth Chemweno
Sponsor:	BDMS
Participants:	1,608 (2019) 2,566 (2018) >33,000 (all races) (2015)

The Bangkok Marathon (also known as BDMS Bangkok Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is a marathon held annually in Bangkok, Thailand, since 1987.^{[1] [2]} The marathon is recognized by the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS).^[3]

History

In 1987, a marathon was held over the Rama IX Bridge in honor of the king's 60th birthday.^[4] Called the Royal Marathon, it helped launch a running boom in Thailand.^[5]

In 2013, the course of the half marathon was changed at the last minute because of concurrent Bangkok street protests which reduced the distance of the half marathon from 21.1 km (13.1 miles) to 19.7 km (12.2 miles).^[6]

The 2020-2021 edition of the race was postponed to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, before registration opened.^{[7] [8]}

Course

The course passes many historical landmarks of cultural and ethnic importance. The marathon starts and finishes in front of The Royal Grand Palace at Sanam Chai Road. The race course is sanctioned by The Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) and the Amateur Athletic Association of Thailand (IAAF Rules).^[9]

Other races

Along with full and half marathons, 10 km and 5 km races were also held.^[10]

Winners

Key: Course record (in bold)

Ed.	Year	Men's winner	Time	Women's winner	Time	Rf.
1	1986		2:23:55		2:57:40
2	1988		2:18:10		2:52:37
3	1989		2:20:15		2:47:53
4	1990		2:27:30		2:55:15
5	1991		2:25:20		2:48:52
6	1992		2:25:24		2:48:28
7	1993		2:23:18		2:58:28
8	1994		2:22:04		2:49:21
9	1995		2:28:35		2:51:14
10	1996		2:25:24		2:44:30
	1997	not held
11	1998		2:18:59		2:53:00
12	1999		2:21:30		2:46:40
13	2000		2:31:11		2:54:01
14	2001		2:26:55		2:48:30
15	2002		2:27:46		2:54:05
16	2003		2:24:34		2:59:31
17	2004		2:22:53		2:57:48
18	2005		2:23:57		3:02:01
19	2006		2:28:02		2:56:50
20	2007		2:18:27		2:51:42
21	2008		2:19:13		2:48:23
22	2009		2:16:41		2:43:49
23	2010		2:16:10		2:42:47
	2011	not held
24	2012 (Feb)		2:18:31		2:41:37
25	2012 (Nov)		2:30:24		2:50:12
26	2013		2:30:27		3:02:31
27	2014		2:33:52		3:15:00
28	2015		2:35:45		3:12:03
	2016	not held
30	2017		2:26:13		2:52:42
31	2018		2:26:39		2:53:31
32	2019		2:33:55		2:55:14
	2020	postponed due to coronavirus pandemic
	2021	postponed due to coronavirus pandemic
	2022	TBA

Notes and References

1. Web site: Associated Press in Bangkok . Bangkok half-marathon becomes world's longest after wrong U-turn | World news . The Guardian . 2015-11-16 . 2015-11-19.
2. Web site: Bangkok marathon miscalculates distance, runners kept going unaware . IBNLive . 2015-11-19.
3. Web site: AIMS – Calendar of Races . Aimsworldrunning.org . 2015-11-19 . 2015-11-10 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151110072644/http://aimsworldrunning.org/Calendar.htm . dead .
4. Web site: Bangkok Post article . https://archive.today/20201106080511/https://www.bangkokpost.com/print/398208/#selection-101.0-101.504 . 6 November 2020 . dead.
5. Web site: Journey Through Thailand's Past: 1987-1991. https://web.archive.org/web/20201106082505/https://www.thebigchilli.com/feature-stories/journey-through-thailands-past-1987-19916520372. 2020-11-06.
6. Web site: Murray Hunter . Outcry after organizers accidentally add 7km to Bangkok half marathon . Asian Correspondent . 2015-11-15 . 2015-11-19.
7. Web site: Archived copy . mobile.twitter.com . 15 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201106083537/https://mobile.twitter.com/bkkmarathon1988/status/1303172709380026368 . 6 November 2020 . dead.
8. https://web.archive.org/web/20201106083207/http://www.bkkmarathon.com/home-EN.php
9. Web site: BKKMarathon.COM. 2015-11-26. 2015-11-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20151127051210/http://www.bkkmarathon.com/eng/about_course.php. dead.
10. News: Anger in Bangkok over not so half marathon. 24 December 2015. Newsweek. 16 November 2015.