North Korea held its first Pyongyang International Marathon in six years on Sunday, with around 200 foreign runners to participating in the event in the reclusive country’s capital.
The race was founded in 1981, but was last held in 2019 and was put on hold the following year due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the nation was slow reopen since. Russian tourists were the first foreign visitors in 2024 while the marathon was still on hiatus.
At the 2019 iteration of the race, 950 foreign runners were permitted to travel to Pyongyang.
According to Koryo Tours, a British tour operator with offices in Beijing, China that is one of only companies assisting visitors to North Korea, the race course involves a lap of Kim Il Sung Stadium, later stretching to the countryside before heading onto nearby streets.
The marathon concludes at Kim Il Sung Stadium, which has a reported capacity of 50,000 and footage of Sunday’s race showed a large crowd in attendance.
However no information about the race results has been released.
Kyoro Tours lists itself as an “exclusive partner” of the Pyongyang International Marathon, charging $2,400 for a six-day trip that includes race entry and flights from Beijing and back.
The Pyongyang International Marathon was founded in 1981 as an event to celebrate Kim Il Sung, who founded North Korea in 1948. Kim Il Sung, the grandfather of current leader Kim Jong Un, died in 1994.
Only men were permitted to run in the first three years, with a women’s race added in 1984.
KCNA, the state news agency of North Korea, said that runners from China, Morocco, Ethiopia and Romania were among the participants.
Prior to nationwide shutdown in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the race was major economy boost in Pyongyang with a weekend of events including 5k, 10k and half marathon. North Korea also used the event to showcase its achievements to the on international media.
Meanwhile, Covid-era restrictions have been eased slowly.
A trial group tour was launched in February but paused just three weeks later in a possible sign of how the country perceives how it could be portrayed in Western media. Visitors were given access to Rason, a remote city that borders China and Russia.
