The Roma–Ostia Half Marathon (Italian: Roma Ostia Mezza Maratona or Italian: Maratonina Roma-Ostia)[1] is an annual half marathon road running event which takes place in early March in Rome, Italy. The course begins in the EUR district of the city and follows a direct southeasterly route to the finish point near the beaches of Ostia.[2] It is Italy's most popular half marathon, with a record 12,000 entries and 9,485 finishers in 2011.[3]
| Roma-Ostia Half Marathon | |
|---|---|
 A view of Via Cristoforo Colombo, where the race begins | |
| Date | Mid-March |
| Location | Rome, Italy |
| Event type | Road |
| Distance | Half marathon |
| Established | 1974 |
| Course records | Men's: 58:02 (2022) Sabastian SaweWomen's: 1:06:03 (2022) Irene Kimais |
| Official site | Roma-Ostia Half Marathon |
| Participants | 5,695 finishers (2022) 4,534 finishers (2021) 8,458 (2019) |
The competition is organised by the Gruppo Sportivo Bancari Romani in partnership with RCS Sports & Events comprises three distinct races. There is an elite level race for male and female athletes, a popular fun run for amateurs, and a "Business Run" which sees teams of runners represent domestic companies in the Campionato Italian Imprenditori di Mezza Maratona (Italian Business Championships in the Half Marathon).[4] The Roma-Ostia race has been held every year since its inception, with the exceptions of 1982 and 1999.[5]
The race was inaugurated in March 1974 and was held on a 28-kilometre course. In its first dozen editions, the Roma-Ostia ranged from a distance of 27 km to 30 km. It was converted into an official half marathon race of 21.1 km for the 1987 edition and has remained so ever since. The course has a point-to-point format and as a result it some editions have had an overall downhill drop, as well as athlete-assisting tailwinds. Due to these factors, some performances have been ineligible for personal bests or records.[5]
In 2011 the course was significantly altered, allowing for faster times and record performances.[3][6] Both the men's and women's course records were set in 2012. Philemon Kimeli Limo's time of 59:32 minutes stands as the men's course record, while Florence Kiplagat's run of 1:06:38 is the current record for females.[7]
The 2020 edition of the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.[8][9]
Past winners of the elite race include Stefano Baldini (the 2004 Olympic marathon champion), four-time Boston Marathon winner Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot, Franca Fiacconi (1998 New York Marathon winner), Olympic marathon bronze medalist Galen Rupp, 2020 Tokyo Marathon winner Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, and Mediterranean champion Souad Aït Salem.[5]
Past winners
Key: Course record Race distance 27–30 km
| Edition | Year | Men's winner | Time (h:m:s) | Women's winner | Time (h:m:s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | 1974 |  Umberto Risi (ITA) | 1:28:54 | Manuela Mausoli (ITA) | 2:05:59 |
| II | 1975 | Paolo Accaputo (ITA) | 1:29:46 | Maria Pirozzi (ITA) | 2:07:23 |
| III | 1976 | Alessandro Cervigni (ITA) | 1:27:55 | Adriana Pedaletti (ITA) | 2:06:43 |
| IV | 1977 | Antonio Erotavo (ITA) | 1:27:42 | Adriana Pedaletti (ITA) | 2:05:38 |
| V | 1978 | Umberto Risi (ITA) | 1:31:47 | Chiara Castellani (ITA) | 2:07:17 |
| VI | 1979 | Marco Marchei (ITA) | 1:27:10 | Maura Bertetto (ITA) | 2:07:55 |
| VII | 1980 | Marco Marchei (ITA) | 1:34:01 | Rossana Matrella (ITA) | 2:11:46 |
| VIII | 1981 |  Dereje Nedi (ETH) | 1:21:20 | Silvana Cruciata (ITA) | 1:42:06 |
| — | 1982 | Cancelled | |||
| IX | 1983 |  Bernard Ford (GBR) | 1:24:30 | Rita Marchisio (ITA) | 1:38:53 |
| X | 1984 | Salvatore Nicosia (ITA) | 1:25:04 | Silvana Cruciata (ITA) | 1:40:56 |
| XI | 1985 | Steve Jones (GBR) | 1:26:25 | Maria Curatolo (ITA) | 1:43:13 |
| XII | 1986 | Loris Pimazzoni (ITA) | 1:34:13 | Angie Pain (GBR) | 1:50:13 |
| XIII | 1987 | Salvatore Nicosia (ITA) | 1:02:12 | Silvana Cucchietti (ITA) | 1:14:32 |
| XIV | 1988 |  El Mostafa Nechchadi (MAR) | 1:04:32 | Glynis Penny (GBR) | 1:15:02 |
| XV | 1989 | Carl Thackery (GBR) | 1:02:10 | Graziella Striuli (ITA) | 1:14:35 |
| XVI | 1990 | Carl Thackery (GBR) | 1:01:44 | Rakiya Maraoui (MAR) | 1:14:56 |
| XVII | 1991 |  Juma Mnyampanda (TAN) | 1:02:34 |  Izabela Zatorska (POL) | 1:13:02 |
| XVIII | 1992 | Andrew Masai (KEN) | 1:02:18 | Anna Villani (ITA) | 1:12:12 |
| XIX | 1993 | Andrew Masai (KEN) | 1:02:23 | Anna Villani (ITA) | 1:12:34 |
| XX | 1994 | Saïd Ermili (MAR) | 1:02:27 |  Tatiana Oussacheva (RUS) | 1:14:59 |
| XXI | 1995 | Giovanni Ruggiero (ITA) | 1:02:53 | Rosanna Munerotto (ITA) | 1:11:36 |
| XXII | 1996 | Philemon Metto (KEN) | 1:01:53 | Patrizia Ritondo (ITA) | 1:13:07 |
| XXIII | 1997 | Stefano Baldini (ITA) | 1:00:56 | Rosanna Munerotto (ITA) | 1:12:50 |
| XXIV | 1998 | Philip Chirchir (KEN) | 1:02:23 | Franca Fiacconi (ITA) | 1:13:19 |
| — | 1999 | Not held | |||
| XXV | 2000 | Francesco Ingargiola (ITA) | 1:01:19 | Maura Viceconte (ITA) | 1:11:07 |
| XXVI | 2001 | Giuliano Battocletti (ITA) | 1:02:24 | Tiziana Alagia (ITA) | 1:11:29 |
| XXVII | 2002 | Robert Cheruiyot (KEN) | 1:00:06 | Gloria Marconi (ITA) | 1:11:31 |
| XXVIII | 2003 | Boniface Usisivu (KEN) | 1:01:13 |  Gloria Marconi (ITA) | 1:09:25 |
| XXIX | 2004 | Paul Kirui (KEN) | 1:00:22 | Hafida Izem (MAR) | 1:10:39 |
| XXX | 2005 | James Kwambai (KEN) | 1:00:45 | Rosaria Console (ITA) | 1:09:34 |
| XXXI | 2006 | William Rotich (KEN) | 1:00:12 |  Nadia Ejjafini (BHR) | 1:10:43 |
| XXXII | 2007 | Benson Barus (KEN) | 1:00:18 |  Souad Aït Salem (ALG) | 1:10:29 |
| XXXIII | 2008 | Jonathan Kipkorir (KEN) | 1:00:19 | Souad Aït Salem (ALG) | 1:09:15 |
| XXXIV | 2009 | Elijah Keitany (KEN) | 1:00:59 | Anna Incerti (ITA) | 1:09:24 |
| XXXV | 2010 | Peter Kimeli (KEN) | 1:01:51 | Alice Timbilil (KEN) | 1:10:34 |
| XXXVI | 2011 |  Tujuba Megersa (ETH) | 59:58 | Anna Incerti (ITA) | 1:09:06 |
| XXXVII | 2012 | Philemon Limo (KEN) | 59:32[10] | Florence Kiplagat (KEN) | 1:06:38 |
| XXXVIII | 2013 | Wilson Kiprop (KEN) | 59:15[11] | Flomena Cheyech (KEN) | 1:07:39 |
| XXXIX | 2014 | Aziz Lahbabi (MAR) | 59:25[12] | Caroline Chepkwony (KEN) | 1:08:48 |
| XL | 2015 | Robert Chemosin (KEN) | 59:37[13] | Amane Beriso (ETH) | 1:08:43 |
| XLI | 2016 | Solomon Yego (KEN) | 58:44 | Worknesh Degefa (ETH) | 1:07:08 |
| XLII | 2017 | Guye Adola (ETH) | 59:18 | Gladys Cherono (KEN) | 1:07:01 |
| XLIII | 2018 |  Galen Rupp (USA) | 59:47 | Haftamnesh Tesfay (ETH) | 1:09:02 |
| XLIV | 2019 | Guye Adola (ETH) | 1:00:17 |  Lonah Chemtai Salpeter (ISR) | 1:06:40 |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to coronavirus outbreak[8] | ||||
| XLV | 2021 | Abdisa Tola (ETH) | 59:54 | Joyce Tele (KEN) | 1:06:35 |
| XLVI | 2022 | Sabastian Sawe (KEN) | 58:02 | Irene Kimais (KEN) | 1:06:03 |
| XLVII | 2023 | Isaac Kipkemboi (KEN) | 59:17 | Dorcas Tuitoek (KEN) | 1:06:21 |
| XLVIII | 2024 | Emmanuel Wafula (KEN) | 1:01:10 | Mary Ngugi (KEN) | 1:07:38 |
Wins by country
| Country | Men's | Women's | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 14 | 26 | 40 |
| Kenya | 20 | 9 | 29 |
| Ethiopia | 5 | 3 | 8 |
| Great Britain | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Morocco | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Algeria | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Bahrain | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Israel | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Poland | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Russia | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Tanzania | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 United States | 1 | 0 | 1 |
References
Further reading
- Luciano Duchi: "Una Corsa…una vita". La storia della Roma–Ostia raccontata attraverso i ricordi di chi l’ha creata e vissuta. Rome 2005 (in Italian)