To be successful, the Chinese city must meet strict criteria within three years
The Shanghai Marathon is in the running to become one of the Abbott World Marathon Majors.
Founded in 1996, the marathon has been held 27 times and in 2020 became the first event in China to receive platinum label status from World Athletics.
If Shanghai’s bid is successful, it will join London, Boston, New York, Chicago, Berlin and Tokyo on the Abbott World Marathon Major list.
To do so, the marathon, which starts at the Bund Bull and ends at the 72,000-capacity Shanghai Stadium, must undergo rigorous testing over three years.
The course records in Shanghai are held by Paul Lonyangata of Kenya and Ebrgual Meles of Ethiopia, who ran 2:07:14 and 2:20:36 in 2015 and 2018 respectively.
Shanghai Marathon (Getty)
More than 150,000 people register for the Shanghai Marathon every year, and the last edition had 38,000 participants, 12% of whom came from abroad.
Both the Sydney and Cape Town marathons are also in the running to become the Abbott World Marathon Major, with all three cities at various stages of the process.
Dawna Stone, CEO of Abbott World Marathon Majors, said: “AbbottWMM is delighted to welcome the Shanghai Marathon into the bidding process from 2024. This is an exciting opportunity to expand our footprint in Asia/China and continue our mission to create, grow and develop. support opportunities for everyone to discover the power of the marathon community. We look forward to working closely with the Shanghai team as we embark on this journey together.”
Mr. Cao Wei, chairman of Shanghai Marathon organizer Donghao Lansheng Group, added: “I would like to express my sincere congratulations to the Shanghai Marathon for becoming a successful candidate in the Abbott World Marathon Majors race.
“This recognition is the highest endorsement of our event management and service. In the future, the Shanghai Marathon will continue to focus on the principle of ‘runners first’, maintain the highest standards and quality, and work diligently to improve event services, aiming to establish itself as a new benchmark in global road running.”
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