“We welcome to Attica the land that gave birth to culture, democracy and the spirit of sports, the tens of thousands of sportsmen and women who flocked from the ends of the world. Good luck to everyone.” With these words, the governor of Attica, Nikos Hardalias, welcomed the runners who participated in the 41st Authentic Marathon, which was also organized by the Attica Region.

Mr. Hardalias, in the morning, at the starting point in Marathon, marked the start of the classic route as a starter, together with the mayor of Marathon, Stergios Tsirkas and the president of SEGAS, Sofia Sakorafa.

In his statements, immediately after the start, he emphasized the need to utilize the experience of organizing international sports events in Attica. “We are capitalizing on this experience, especially in the organizational and operational field. We invest a lot in extroversion, we want Attica to be the protagonist”, he said characteristically and added that the hosting of similar events “conveys to the entire planet the positive image of Attica, a modern metropolitan Region, that emits light, that emits our clear will to we take it forward and only forward”.

The regional governor of Attica, after thanking Ms. Sakorafa for the “perfect cooperation in the organization of the Marathon”, underlined that this cooperation – both with SEGAS and with the Deputy Minister of Sports, Yannis Vroutsis – will also extend to the creation of a “a large international network, in which all major cities that organize Marathons will be able to participate”.

“We are proud co-organizers of this premier sporting event of history, memory and culture, with a global reach,” Mr. Hardalias pointed out, while noting that all participants are winners, regardless of the final ranking, as “participation alone is so honorable, so special, so ideal for all these people who carry the message of the games all over the world”.

At noon, at the Panathenaic Stadium, the regional governor welcomed the runners who finished first, together with the Deputy Minister of Sports, Yiannis Vroutsis, Mrs. Sakorafa and the president of the European Athletics Federation, Dobromir Karamarinov.

Mr. Hardalias awarded the prize to the first to cut the finish line, the athlete of GAS Ilissos, Charalambos Pitsolis, winner of the event in 2022, who this year set a new individual record.

It is noted that in this year’s 41st Authentic Marathon of Athens, a total of more than 73,000 runners from 152 countries of the world participated, of which 21,000 in the Authentic Route of 42,195 meters from Marathon to Kallimarmaro.