Runners in the 2008 New York City Half Marathon running past the Park Central Hotel

The Chicago Half Marathon is a Chicago Marathon tuneup on Lake Shore Drive in the South Side of Chicago

Runners taking part in the Bristol Half Marathon

A half marathon is a road running event of 21.0975 kilometres (13.1094 mi).^[1] It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently.^[2] One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a marathon requires.^[2] In 2008, Running USA reported that the half marathon is the fastest growing type of race.^[2] A 2010 article by Universal Sports echoed the growing popularity of the distance.^[2][3] New York Road Runners CEO Mary Wittenberg and noted running author and coach Jeff Galloway have also commented on the popularity of the distance.^[2] It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcuts. The half marathon is also known as a 21K, 21.1K or 13.1 miles, although these values are rounded and not formally correct.

Training[link]

Most people tend to run a half marathon before running a full marathon. A half marathon will help to prepare the body and the mind for the 42.195 kilometres (26.219 mi) that makes up a marathon. Running a half marathon is both physically and mentally demanding. For those who have never run this distance before, it is imperative to train correctly. It is advised to slowly build up endurance over a twelve weeks period; decreasing the intensity of the training in the last week, or Tapering, before the event. If the body is over-worked, injury is more likely to occur. It is also important to eat correctly and stay hydrated before, during, and after the race.

World record progression[link]

This list is a chronological progression of record times for the half marathon. World records in the half marathon are now ratified by the International Association of Athletics Federations, the international governing body for the sport of athletics. The official IAAF world record for men is 58:23, set by Zersenay Tadese of Eritrea on March 21, 2010, in Lisbon, Portugal. The official IAAF world record for women is 1:05:50, set by Mary Keitany of Kenya on February 18, 2011, in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates.

Key:
      Listed by the International Association of Athletics Federations as a world best prior to official acceptance^[4]
      Ratified by the International Association of Athletics Federations as a world best (since January 1, 2003) or world record (since January 1, 2004)^[4]
      Recognized by the Association of Road Racing Statisticians^[5]
  a   Noted by the International Association of Athletics Federations as set on uncertified or aided course which does not fulfill the criteria specified in IAAF Rule 260.28.b or 260.28.c
  +   Noted by the International Association of Athletics Federations as set en route to longer distances

Men[link]

Time	Name	Nationality	Date	Event/Place	Source	Notes
67:01	Brian Hill-Cottingham	United Kingdom	April 9, 1960	Romford, England	ARRS[5]
65:44	Ron Hill	United Kingdom	June 19, 1965	Freckleton	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
65:42	Pete Ravald	United Kingdom	June 18, 1966	Freckleton	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
64:28 a +	Abebe Bikila	Ethiopia	October 21, 1964	Tokyo	IAAF[4]
63:22 a +	Derek Clayton	Australia	December 3, 1967	Fukuoka Marathon	IAAF[4]
64:45	Ron Hill	United Kingdom	June 21, 1969	Freckleton	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
63:53	Derek Graham	United Kingdom	May 2, 1970	Belfast	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
63:46	Juan Rafael Angel Perez	Costa Rica	February 8, 1976	Coamo	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
63:46	Jose Reveyn	Belgium	March 27, 1976	Den Haag	IAAF[4]
62:57	Miruts Yifter	Ethiopia	February 6, 1977	Coamo	IAAF[4]	IAAF notes unrounded time as 62:56.3
62:37	Toshihiro Matsumoto	Japan	February 6, 1977	Beppu, Ōita	ARRS[5]
62:47	Tony Simmons	United Kingdom	June 24, 1978	Welwyn Garden City	IAAF[4]
62:36	Nick Rose	United Kingdom	October 14, 1979	Dayton	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
62:32	Kirk Pfeffer	United States	December 7, 1979	Las Vegas	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
62:16	Stan Mavis	United States	January 27, 1980	New Orleans	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
61:47	Herb Lindsay	United States	September 20, 1981	Manchester, Vermont	IAAF[4]
61:36	Mike Musyoki	Kenya	September 19, 1982	Philadelphia	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
61:32	Paul Cummings	United States	September 25, 1983	Dayton	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
61:14	Steve Jones	United Kingdom	August 11, 1985	Birmingham	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
60:55	Mark Curp	United States	September 15, 1985	Philadelphia	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
60:43 a	Mike Musyoki	Kenya	June 8, 1986	South Shields	IAAF[4]
60:10 a	Matthews Temane	South Africa	July 25, 1987	East London	IAAF[4]
60:46	Dionicio Ceron	Mexico	September 16, 1990	Philadelphia	ARRS[5]
60:06 a	Steve Moneghetti	Australia	January 24, 1993	Tokyo	IAAF[4]
60:24	Benson Masya	Kenya	April 3, 1993	The Hague	ARRS[5]
59:47	Moses Tanui	Kenya	April 3, 1993	Milan	IAAF[4]
60:13	Paul Tergat	Kenya	April 15, 1993	Milan	ARRS[5]
59:56	Shem Kororia	Kenya	October 4, 1997	Košice	ARRS[5]
59:43 a	António Pinto	Portugal	March 15, 1998	Lisboa	IAAF[4]
59:17	Paul Tergat	Kenya	April 4, 1998	Milano	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
59:06 a	Paul Tergat	Kenya	March 26, 2000	Lisboa	IAAF[4]
59:16	Samuel Wanjiru	Kenya	September 11, 2005	Rotterdam	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]	ARRS notes unrounded time as 59:15.8
59:05 a	Zersenay Tadesse	Eritrea	September 18, 2005	South Shields	IAAF[4]
58:55	Haile Gebrselassie	Ethiopia	January 15, 2006	Tempe	IAAF[4]
59:07	Paul Kosgei Malakwen	Kenya	April 2, 2006	Berlin	ARRS[5]
58:53	Samuel Wanjiru	Kenya	February 9, 2007	Ra's Al Khaymah	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
58:33	Samuel Wanjiru	Kenya	March 17, 2007	Den Haag	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]	ARRS notes time as 58:35
58:23	Zersenay Tadese	Eritrea	March 21, 2010	Lisbon	IAAF,[6]ARRS[5]

Women[link]

Time	Name	Nationality	Date	Event/Place	Source	Notes
83:56	Kathy Gibbons	United States	March 7, 1971	Phoenix, Arizona	ARRS[5]
83:11	Chantal Langlace	France	September 8, 1974	Ay-Champagne, France	ARRS[5]
82:05	Silvana Cruciata	Italy	April 3, 1977	Milan	ARRS[5]
79:45	Marja Wokke	Netherlands	January 8, 1978	Edmond aan Zee	ARRS[5]
78:44	Silvana Cruciata	Italy	April 16, 1978	Milan	ARRS[5]
78:30	Jean Abare	United States	July 4, 1978	Coronado, California	ARRS[5]
75:04 a	Marty Cooksey	United States	August 26, 1978	San Diego	IAAF[4]
77:48	Daniele Justin	Belgium	November 12, 1978	Nizare, Portland	ARRS[5]
75:58	Michiko Gorman	United States	November 19, 1978	Pasadena	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
75:01	Ellison Goodall	United States	March 10, 1979	Winston-Salem	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
74:50 a	Kathy Mintie	United States	August 25, 1979	San Diego	IAAF[4]
74:04	Patty Catalano	United States	September 23, 1979	Manchester, Vermont	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]	ARRS notes time as 74:03 per ARRS
73:59	Marja Wokke	Netherlands	March 29, 1980	Den Haag	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
73:26	Joan Benoit	United States	January 18, 1981	New Orleans	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
71:16	Joan Benoit	United States	March 7, 1981	San Diego	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
69:57	Grete Waitz	Norway	May 15, 1982	Göteborg	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
69:14	Joan Benoit	United States	September 18, 1983	Philadelphia	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]	ARRS notes time as 69:10 per ARRS
68:34	Joan Benoit	United States	September 16, 1984	Philadelphia	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
66:40 a	Ingrid Kristiansen	Norway	April 5, 1987	Sandnes	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
68:32	Ingrid Kristiansen	Norway	March 19, 1989	New Bedford	IAAF[4]
67:59	Elana Meyer	South Africa	May 18, 1991	East London	IAAF[4]
67:59	Uta Pippig	Germany	March 20, 1994	Kyoto	IAAF[4]
67:58	Uta Pippig	Germany	March 19, 1995	Kyoto	IAAF[4]
67:36	Elana Meyer	South Africa	March 9, 1997	Kyoto	IAAF[4]
67:29	Elana Meyer	South Africa	March 8, 1998	Kyoto	IAAF[4]
66:44	Elana Meyer	South Africa	January 15, 1999	Tokyo	IAAF[4]
65:44 a	Susan Chepkemei	Kenya	April 1, 2001	Lisboa	IAAF[4]
65:40 a	Paula Radcliffe	United Kingdom	September 21, 2003	South Shields	IAAF[4]	IAAF notes unrounded time as 65:39.6
66:25	Lornah Kiplagat	Netherlands	October 14, 2007	Udine	IAAF,[4] ARRS[5]
65:50	Mary Keitany	Kenya	February 18, 2011	Ras Al Khaimah	IAAF[7]

Best Year Performance[link]

[edit] Men's Seasons Best^[8]

YEAR	TIME	ATHLETE	PLACE
1970	1:03:53 1:03:53	Derek Graham (NIR)	Belfast
1971	1:05:25 1:05:25	Ron Hill (GBR)	Freckleton
1972	1:04:23 1:04:23	Víctor Manuel Mora (COL)	Coamo
1973	1:05:07 1:05:07	Mario Cuevas (MEX)	Maracaibo
1974	1:04:45 1:04:45	Vladimir Merkushin (URS)	Wieze
1975	1:05:08 1:05:08	Paul Angenvoorth (FRG)	Grevenmacher
1976	1:03:46 1:03:46	Juan Rafael Perez (CRC)	Coamo
1977	1:02:37 1:02:37	Toshihiro Matsumoto (JPN)	Beppu
1978	1:02:47 1:02:47	Tony Simmons (GBR)	Welwyn Garden City
1979	1:02:32 1:02:32	Kirk Pfeffer (USA)	Las Vegas
1980	1:02:16 1:02:16	Stan Mavis (USA)	New Orleans
1981	1:01:47 1:01:47	Herb Lindsay (USA)	Manchester
1982	1:01:36 1:01:36	Michael Musyoki (KEN)	Philadelphia
1983	1:01:32 1:01:32	Paul Cummings (USA)	Dayton
1984	1:01:52 1:01:52	Alberto Cova (ITA)	Milan
1985	1:00:55 1:00:55	Mark Curp (USA)	Philadelphia
1986	1:00:43 1:00:43	Michael Musyoki (KEN)	South Shields
1987	1:00:04 1:00:04	Carl Thackery (ENG)	Barnsley
1988	1:01:00 1:01:00	John Treacy (IRL)	South Shields
1989	1:01:10 1:01:10	Matthew Temane (RSA)	Durban
1990	1:00:34 1:00:34	Steve Moneghetti (AUS)	South Shields
1991	1:00:51 1:00:51	Moses Tanui (KEN)	Milan
1992	1:00:24 1:00:24	Benson Masya (KEN)	South Shields
1993	!59:47 59:47	Moses Tanui (KEN)	Milan[9]
1994	1:00:02 1:00:02	Benson Masya (KEN)	South Shields
1995	1:00:26 1:00:26	Simon Lopuyet (KEN)	Lisbon
1996	1:00:31 1:00:31	Paul Koech (KEN)	Ivry-sur-Seine
1997	!59:56 59:56	Shem Kororia (KEN)	Košice
1998	!59:17 59:17	Paul Tergat (KEN)	Milan
1999	!59:22 59:22	Paul Tergat (KEN)	Milan
2000	1:00:30 1:00:30	Kenichi Takahashi (JPN)	Tokyo
2001	!59:52 59:52	Fabián Roncero (ESP)	Berlin
2002	!59:41 59:41	Haile Gebrselassie (ETH)	Lisbon
2003	1:00:01 1:00:01	Hendrick Ramaala (RSA)	South Shields
2004	!59:37 59:37	Dejene Berhanu (ETH)	South Shields
2005	!59:05 59:05	Zersenay Tadese (ERI)	South Shields
2006	!58:55 58:55	Haile Gebrselassie (ETH)	Tempe
2007	!58:35 58:35	Samuel Wanjiru (KEN)	The Hague
2008	!59:15 59:15	Haile Gebrselassie (ETH)  Deriba Merga (ETH)	Lisbon New Delhi
2009	!58:52 58:52	Patrick Makau (KEN)	Ras al-Khaimah
2010	!58:23 58:23	Zersenay Tadese (ERI)	Lisbon
2011	!58:30 58:30	Zersenay Tadese (ERI)	Lisbon

[edit] Women's Seasons Best^[8]

YEAR	TIME	ATHLETE	PLACE
1978	1:15:04	Marty Cooksey (USA)	San Diego
1979	1:14:03	Patti Catalano (USA)	Manchester
1980	1:13:59	Marja Wokke (NED)	Den Haag
1981	1:11:16	Joan Samuelson (USA)	San Diego
1982	1:09:57	Grete Waitz (NOR)	Gothenburg
1983	1:09:10	Joan Samuelson (USA)	Philadelphia
1984	1:08:34	Joan Samuelson (USA)	Philadelphia
1985	1:09:44	Joan Samuelson (USA)	Philadelphia
1986	1:09:03	Ingrid Kristiansen (NOR)	Drammen
1987	1:06:40	Ingrid Kristiansen (NOR)	Sandnes
1988	1:08:49	Grete Waitz (NOR)	South Shields
1989	1:08:31	Ingrid Kristiansen (NOR)	New Bedford
1990	1:09:33	Rosa Mota (POR)	South Shields
1991	1:07:59	Elana Meyer (RSA)	East London
1992	1:08:42	Liz McColgan (GBR)	Dundee
1993	1:09:35	Valentina Yegorova (RUS)	St Petersburg
1994	1:07:59	Uta Pippig (GER)	Kyoto
1995	1:07:59	Uta Pippig (GER)	Kyoto
1996	1:09:15	Nadia Prasad (NCL)	Paris
1997	1:07:36	Elana Meyer (RSA)	Kyoto
1998	1:07:29	Elana Meyer (RSA)	Kyoto
1999	1:06:44	Elana Meyer (RSA)	Tokyo
2000	1:07:07	Paula Radcliffe (GBR)	South Shields
2001	1:06:47	Paula Radcliffe (GBR)	Bristol
2002	1:07:19	Sonia O'Sullivan (IRL)	South Shields
2003	1:05:39	Paula Radcliffe (GBR)	South Shields
2004	1:07:55	Benita Johnson (AUS)	South Shields
2005	1:07:33	Derartu Tulu (ETH)	South Shields
2006	1:07:16	Edith Masai (KEN)	Berlin
2007	1:06:25	Lornah Kiplagat (NED)	Udine
2008	1:07:57	Philes Ongori (KEN)	Marugame
2009	1:06:36	Mary Keitany (KEN)	Birmingham
2010	1:07:07	Elvan Abeylegesse (TUR)	Ras al-Khaimah
2011	1:05:50	Mary Keitany (KEN)	Ras al-Khaimah

Largest number of participants[link]

The current biggest half marathon in the world is the Göteborgsvarvet, also known as Gothenburg half marathon, held annually in Gothenburg, Sweden,^[10] with 59,417 announced runners and 43,026 finishers in 2011. The largest ever held was Broloppet (the Bridge race) between Copenhagen-Malmö with 79,719 finishers, held in connection with the Öresund Bridge inauguration year 2000.^[11][12]

See also[link]

• List of half marathon races
• IAAF World Half Marathon Championships
• Mini marathon
• Quarter marathon

References[link]

External links[link]

• USA Half Marathon Race Directory
• The best half-marathon times for men
• The best half-marathon times for women
• RunningInEurope.com List of half marathons in Europe
• HalfMarathonList.co.uk – List of half marathons in the UK
• HalfMarathons.Net – Directory of half marathons in the USA and around the world
• Map of half marathons in the USA and Canada