As mentioned on International Haiku Poetry Day, this will be shorter than usual. I’m glad I got to see the Marathon, though, and can write a little bit about what I saw.
Maybe this time I’ll start with the end. For the first time (I think), I’m uploading screenshots of the list of top 10 runners, women and men.
The men’s race was not at all close. The three top runners came in quite far apart, as you can see from the times listed. There was some hope that the record might be broken in the men’s race, but by Oqbe Kibrom, who was the favorite but came in second. In the women’s race, Tigist Gezahagn did break Vibian Chebkirui’s 2022 record. She ran the marathon in 2:20:06 compared to Chebkirui’s 2:20:59. In fact, Haftamnesh Tesfaye, who was a close second in the women’s race, also came in under Chebkirui’s record.
The women’s race was especially interesting because of those two top runners, who ran as a group with their pace setter. Apparently, they train together and it all looked very collaborative — at one point Tesfaye, who ran almost exclusively right behind Gezahagn, slipped and very briefly went down and Gezahagn took time to look over her shoulder and check — until the two of them entered the Ring, down at Wollzeile, and then Tesfaye made a move. It was quite suspenseful for a bit and then Gezahagn found it in her to simply pull away, to cross the finish line 12 seconds ahead.
First Austrians were, as you can see, Andreas Vojta and Eva Wutti, the same runners to come in first for Austria in 2025. Both were somewhat disappointed with their performances. Andreas Vojta was hoping for a personal best but did more or less as well as he did last year, both in terms of time and position. Eva Wutti was struggling at times and at one point in the Prater simply stopped, clearly in distress. She later mentioned that she was having muscle problems and that the heat affected her. (In fact, a lot of people talked about the heat. By the end, the ORF was saying that it was 23°C [about 73°F] — my thermometer showed about 18° [64°F] but OK. In any case, it was well over the 8° to 9°C that they last year, when it was barely above freezing, said are ideal.)
A couple of things I want to remember:
- Once again there was a running reporter, Peter Herzog. Sometimes it was really hard to understand what he was saying because he, understandably, was breathing so hard. At one point, the reporters in the studio told him to stop talking and breathe! But in Viennese. Something like: “Schnauf dich jetzt a bisserl durch. Sprechen abstellen und atmen.”
- To encourage Eva Wutti, a fan held up a quickly made sign that said “Zieh durch, Oida!” (“Keep going” or “Hang in there”) using the Viennese expression “Oida” that can mean almost anything (see link to YouTube video below). In this case, it was clearly affectionate and meant, I felt, to bring a smile.
- In fact, the Viennese dialect and accent made a particular impression on me this time. One organizer of the race sounded German to me and that really stood out. Otherwise it was the Viennese, or perhaps simply Austrians, “unter sich” — among themselves.
- Michael Buchleitner, a former top Austrian marathoner, now 56 years old, on hearing one of the no longer young Austrian runners say he was hoping to improve next year that there comes an age where there is no more room for improvement. True in other aspects of life as well — although not all aspects!
- I find myself surprised at how young the runners are. The top runners seem to be mainly in their 20s. Obviously, I’ll have to jettision my idea that the marathon favors older runners because of the need for experience. I grew up with that perception. I now have no idea where it came from. (I thought it was from Frank Shorter, but he was 25 when he won his (first?) gold medal.) Ah, well.
- How much attention was given this time to the “Verpflegung” or, basically, refreshments for the runners, and how important a role they play both in terms of what and when
- The repeated emphasis from both commentators and runners that, while the outcome of any sporting event is unpredictable, those of marathons are especially so.
- And, finally, that at the beginning the commentators were talking about a Harvard Medical School student who was running and had to be back in time for classes because attendance is mandatory. This is possible, they explained, because tomorrow is a holiday in Massachusetts because the Boston Marathon is being held — never realizing that the Boston Marathon is being held tomorrow because it is a holiday (Patriots Day). 😉
Some links:
Officially Ewa’s priceless video on the many uses of “Oida”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuXR53ex4iI
The official VCM website: https://www.vienna-marathon.com/
And it turns out the VCM has its own Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_City_Marathon
Full marks for bravery, if you ask me.
ecbinvienna 