Rhodes Marathon 2024

The Rhodes International Marathon is a 42 km marathon of the Old Town of Rhodes that encircles the island’s beachside, established in 2014. The marathon was inspired and designed by the late Greek-American George Zaras, Marietta Papavassiliou, who serves as the president of the Organizing Committee, and American author, Wayne Kurtz. Since its conception, athletes from over 50 countries of the world have been participating in the marathon, catching glimpses of the Aegean Sea, while they test their endurance and strength.

On 21 April 2024, the 9th Rhodes International Marathon will take place, featuring the traditional 42 km marathon, a half-marathon, as well as 5 km and 10 km races. These marathons start and finish in Eleftheria Square, circling the amazing Medieval City of Rhodes. Energy drinks, gels, snacks and water are offered through various sections of the race, and timing devices are available for each runner at the three main points of the race, the start/finish and the two U-turns. Registrations have already begun and preparation started close to the end of the 2023 Marathon. The organizers of the marathon are hoping to exceed last year’s success which saw over 3,000 runners from all over the world participating in the races!

Even though it started in 2014, this year’s marathon will be the 9th edition of the competition since state laws disallowed it from taking place in 2020 because of the global pandemic. In 2021, due to similar circumstances, the organizers hosted the first and only Rhodes Virtual Marathon, with more than 2,400 participants from all over the world. This special competition was held by having participants take pictures and record the time of their run either at home or in their country, without necessarily being in Rhodes!