Athens could open a new chapter in marathon running
According to Lorraine McKenna’s report for BBC Sport and a related update from World Athletics, the marathon will remain part of the World Athletics Championships in 2027 and 2029. After that, the event is set to move into its own annual championship from 2030, with men and women competing in alternate years. The Road Running Championships would remain on the calendar as a separate competition, rather than being folded into this new format.
Athens moves to the front of the line
Athens is not being considered simply because it can host a race. It brings history with it, and World Athletics clearly sees value in launching a new championship in a place that already carries meaning for the event itself. If the governing body wants this race to feel distinct from the wider World Championships, beginning in Greece would give it an identity that makes immediate sense to both serious athletics followers and casual sports fans.
World Athletics president Lord Sebastian Coe said the federation was pleased to explore the project with Athens and described the marathon as an iconic discipline. That point matters, because it shows this is not being presented as a minor scheduling adjustment. The message from the sport’s leadership is that the marathon has grown large enough, and important enough, to justify a global event built specifically around it.
Why the marathon is being given its own stage
For years, the marathon has sat inside the broader World Athletics Championships, sharing space with every major track and field event on the program. This proposal would change that balance. A separate championship would allow organizers to build the schedule, host setting, and presentation around road racing itself, instead of treating the marathon as one event among many over a crowded championships week.
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That does not automatically mean everyone in the sport will love the idea, but it does show how World Athletics now views marathon running. The event has moved beyond its old place in the program and now carries enough reach, visibility, and tradition to stand alone. From 2031 onward, the marathon would no longer be contested at the biennial World Athletics Championships, which would mark the end of a format that has been familiar for decades.
London could stage the final race under the old format
Before any new championship begins, there is still one last piece of unfinished business. The marathon will remain part of the World Athletics Championships in 2027 and 2029, so the final edition under the existing model has not yet been decided. If London succeeds in its bid to host the 2029 championships, the city could end up staging the last championship marathon before the event moves into its own standalone structure.
That would create a neat contrast in the story World Athletics is trying to tell. Athens would be linked to the opening of the new era, while London could become the place where the previous version quietly comes to an end. Whether the change is embraced immediately or not, the sport now appears committed to treating the marathon as something that deserves its own global spotlight.
Sources: BBC Sport, Lorraine McKenna; World Athletics
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