Interview with Danske Bank Vilnius Marathon

You are organizing the Danske Bank Vilnius Marathon on the 13th September 2015 in Vilnius, Lithuania. Can you tell us where your event is located and how runners are able to travel there easily?

The marathon takes place in Vilnius – Capital of Lithuania. Runners can travel here by plane to Vilnius Airport, or by train or bus.

Are there different distances in your event?

Vilnius Marathon offers full marathon (42,195 km), half marathon ( 21,98 km), quarter marathon (10,549 km), mini marathon (4,2 k.), team relay ( 4 x 10,549 k.) and UNICEF kids run ( 1,0 km).

Tell us something about the history of your event. Why was it created in the first place and how has it changed over the years?

The first running event in Vilnius was organized by Lithuanian Athletic Federation in 2001. The run was called Maxima Cup. The event got its official Vilnius Marathon name in 2004 and it was the first time that the runners were able to run a full marathon distance. Vilnius City Municipality positively welcomed the marathon event as it is a wonderful way to encourage healthier lifestyle and add a new festival to the city’s event-calendar. In 2007 Vilnius Marathon became a member of AIMS. Beginning with only 200 professional and non-professional runners and only 42,195 km distance in 2004, Vilnius Marathon grew to more than 5000 runners and 6 distances to run in 2012.

Describe your route a bit. How’s the scenery? Is the route beginner friendly? Can runners expect PB’s?

The scenic course will go through Vilnius old town, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994, passing historical buildings and places. The participants will also run across 7 bridges. The course will also go through Vingis park – one of the biggest city parks in Europe. The park was founded several centuries ago. Last year the participants described it as a beautiful course that is interesting to run and not too difficult even for non experienced runners. As for PBs, it depends on a lot of different conditions, so it would be hard for me to say.

How many runners do you expect to have in your event?

The total number of participants last year was 10 000. This year we are expecting to have even more runners than last year.

What kind of weather conditions can runners prepare to face in your event?

The marathon takes place in the beginning of autumn, so there should be around 12-20 degrees Celsius and hopefully sunny like last year. On the other hand it’s Lithuania, so you should be prepared for some rain too.

What else runners should do in the city after/before the race? Any suggestions to newcomers?

We would recommend to see the Gediminas Castle, hill of Three cross where you have view of whole city, beautiful churches all around the old town, go for a walk to Gediminas avenue. Basically going to the old town gives you a lot of wonderful moments and you will get a chance to get familiar with the race course. Just don’t get lost in all the beauty of the city or you might get too tired before the race!

How would you describe your event to people who haven’t yet participated in it? What makes your event unique?

Running in Vilnius Marathon will give you a chance to run in the greenest Capital of Europe and run through centuries of history from Gothic to modern times. The race course is very dynamic with different pavement types, straight sections and curves, with some hills and slopes too.

Anything else you want to tell about your event?

Vilnius Marathon is still in the process of developing itself and is open for suggestion. So runners themselves can become actively involved in making a wonderful running event for everyone. And the best way to have an opinion on the event is to come and run. We invite every runner to come and try out our Marathon and we’ll be waiting for responses afterwards.