Running Festival of the City of Mozart 2018

The running festival in the city of Mozart builds on the good experiences of recent years and will also present itself in 2018 with a varied program of eight competitions and a spectacular supporting program spread over three days. "Thanks to this wide selection, every type of athlete - from walkers to leisurely runners to marathon runners - feels at home at the running festival in the city of Mozart. The people of Salzburg can look forward to an international running festival in a special atmosphere and to an eventful weekend dedicated to running and physical activity,” emphasizes organizer Johannes Langer. Sporting highlights of this year's Salzburg Running Festival are the ÖLV State Championships and the Austrian Masters Championships in marathon running.

Freitag and Kemboi in the role of favourites

For the sixth time in the last eleven years, the Salzburg Marathon has been commissioned by the Austrian Athletics Association to host the national title fights in the supreme discipline of running. This is to be understood as a seal of quality for the Salzburg Marathon, which offers an ideal stage for many of the fastest Austrian marathon runners. The big favorite for women is Karin Freitag (LG Decker Itter), who has already won the gold medal four times – including in 2012 and 2014 in the city of Mozart. After placings two and three in the last two years, the experienced Tyrolean wants to climb the top step of the podium again this year.

The men's field is more densely occupied at the top. The list of candidates for the title is led by Edwin Kemboi (KLC), who celebrated his first state championship title in Salzburg in 2014. At that time, the Carinthian still represented his home country of Kenya. Shortly after the success in Salzburg, he received Austrian citizenship. Edwin Kemboi is the first marathon world championship participant in the new millennium to compete in the Salzburg marathon - in the title fights in Beijing in 2015 he took 32nd place in difficult external conditions. Kemboi will be challenged at the weekend by defending champion Endris Seid (LCAV Jodl Packaging), veteran Robert Gruber (Kolland Topsport Gaal), who triumphed at the last state championships in Salzburg in 2016 and is a multiple medal winner, and debutant Isaac Kosgei (TGW Zehnkampf Union), who recently showed strong performances on short distances (including third place at the ÖLV state championships in the 10 km road run as part of the Vienna City Marathon and fourth place at the ÖLV state championships in cross-country skiing in March in Rif).

With the Kenyan top runners Peter Wangari, Wesley Kemboi and William Koskei among the men and Teresiah Omosa and Manuela Soccol from Belgium among the women, the best local runners will find the ideal sporting conditions at the Salzburg Marathon to push their personal limits.

Sparkasse half marathon and Hervis-10K Salzburg CityRun

Parallel to the 15th Salzburg Marathon starting at 9 a.m. at Mirabellplatz, the Sparkasse Half-Marathon, the most popular competition within the Salzburg Marathon, will also start. The marathon Sunday will be opened by the participants of the Hervis-10K Salzburg CityRun, who will start the race at 8:45 a.m. at Leopoldskroner Weiher and complete the second half of the Salzburg half-marathon route. The running distance for the three main competitions is identical to last year. The half-marathon route includes unique highlights such as the state bridge with the magnificent view of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Salzburg's old town and the majestic Hohensalzburg Fortress, the straight Hellbrunner Allee, the passage through the palace grounds of the Hellbrunn Palace and the circumnavigation of the Leopoldskroner Weiher with the wonderful View of Lepoldskron Castle. The marathon runners have to complete the course twice. Thanks to this characteristic, all marathon participants have the chance to decide during the race to run to the half-marathon finish if necessary. You will automatically be included in the correct classification and will receive the finisher medal of the Sparkasse half marathon.

Running event of the short distances

For the second time, the start and finish area of the Salzburg Marathon is right in front of the magnificent Mirabell Palace. The event area stretches from Mirabellplatz to the Kurgarten, which gives the event a special character, to the Salzburg Congress. All competitions start and finish either at Mirabellplatz or in the Kurgarten - with just one small exception: the start of the Hervis-10K Salzburg CityRun is at Leopoldskroner Weiher. This results in a compact event with short distances, which brings enormous advantages for the runners. The Wyndham Grand Salzburg Conference Center and the Salzburg main train station are also within easy walking distance.




At the press conference of the Salzburg Marathon on May 2nd in Mirabell Palace, the following statements were made:

Bernhard Auinger Deputy Mayor of the City of Salzburg
“The city government and I personally, as the politician responsible for the sports department, have made a strong commitment to the Salzburg Marathon. It is the largest running event in the province of Salzburg, and we want to send out a clear message together with the organizer: 'Exercise is healthy. People, move!' I would particularly like to emphasize that the running festival in the city of Mozart offers suitable competitions for every type of runner and includes both adults and children in the event.

Bernhard Auinger will take part in the Hervis 10K Salzburg CityRun on Sunday and, together with three colleagues, in the Hervis 10K Team Challenge.


Mag.a Martina Berthold | state councillor
“The city and state of Salzburg run together with stamina and strength at the running festival in the city of Mozart. I am particularly pleased that the Sports Day has been integrated into the Salzburg Marathon weekend for the fourth time in a row. On Saturday from 12:30 p.m. in the Kurgarten, Salzburg sports associations and clubs will be presenting various types of sports and putting together an attractive program for adults and children. Another important concern for me is the integration of disabled sports. We in Salzburg offer sports and exercise for everyone, from young to older.”

Markus Saddle | Director of the Salzburg Savings Bank
“The Sparkasse lives sport. We support around 230 running events in Austria every year, that's almost three million kilometers run. It goes without saying that the Salzburger Sparkasse is happy to act as a partner of the Salzburg Marathon. For me personally, the running festivals in the city of Mozart are an annual highlight. This year I will really enjoy the Hervis-10K Salzburg CityRun against the beautiful backdrop of Salzburg. I wish the organization team every success in their tried and tested manner and all runners a lot of fun and lots of joy in the competitions.”

Markus Sattel takes part in the Hervis-10K Salzburg CityRun.

Colonel Manfred Lindenthaler, BA | City Police Commander
“The Running Festival in the City of Mozart is the largest sporting event in the entire state. Of course, the safety of everyone involved is paramount. Our goal is to do everything humanly possible to ensure that the running event is safe and that all runners reach the finish line in good health. It is of course clear that this can only be achieved on Sunday with significant traffic disruptions for the people of Salzburg.”

Mag Tourism Salzburg Ltd
“The running festival in the city of Mozart has developed into a major event in the city, which of course has positive tourist effects on the city and state of Salzburg. This year Salzburg will present itself from its most beautiful side and fantastic pictures will be produced and sent all over the world, showing the city in motion.

Dipl.-Kffr. Gabriele Stadler Altstadt Salzburg Marketing GmbH
“The heart and center of Salzburg's old town is presented by the Salzburg Marathon. The runners are very welcome guests from a tourist point of view, because they stay in the city for several days and liven up the old town of Salzburg for the entire weekend with the Running Festival of the City of Mozart.”

John Langer | Organizer Salzburg Marathon
“Over the last 15 years, the Salzburg Marathon has developed into a great event and over time, in addition to the classic marathon, shorter distances have also been integrated into the event. Based on studies, around 1.5 million people in Austria run regularly. With our wide range of competitions, we want to meet people's needs and offer them an ideal running offer. The most important thing is: We move people. We offer an attractive sporting destination with a high experience value. Because running changes life.”