Run a Marathon in Front of a Home Crowd

All male and female marathon runners over the age of 35 have a unique opportunity to compete at the World Masters Athletics Marathon Championships, which will be held on 11 October as part of the 34th Zagreb Powerade Marathon. All those who are members of a national masters athletics organisation, meet the age requirement and are ready to run a marathon can apply. The organisers point out that membership in an athletics club or meeting qualifying standards is not required to compete.

In accordance with World Masters Athletics rules, registration is open until 1 September 2026. Participants in the World Masters Athletics Marathon Championships must register via the dedicated website wmamc2026.com, and not via the standard Zagreb Powerade Marathon registration form.

“In Zagreb, we hope to bring together between 700 and 1,000 of the world’s best male and female marathon runners over the age of 35, and we expect that more than 100 Croatian competitors could take part, with good prospects of winning medals both individually and as teams. There has been great interest, with competitors from 16 countries already registered, led, as expected, by France, Spain, Germany, Italy and Croatia,” said Ivan Pukšar, President of the Croatian Masters Athletics Association and European representative on the WMA Organising Committee.

The start and finish of the Zagreb Powerade Marathon are in Ban Josip Jelačić Square. The youngest participants will run their first metres in children’s races ranging from 100 to 600 metres, while experienced marathon runners will cover 42.195 kilometres. More specifically, runners can choose between four main races: the marathon, which will also host the World Masters Athletics Marathon Championships, the 21-kilometre half marathon, the marathon relay for teams of four, and the Garmin 10K race for recreational runners, beginners and anyone who wants to test their speed. Registration for the races is open via the official website.

“We want to bring the Zagreb Marathon closer to everyone, not only to those who are already ready to run 42 kilometres. Some will run their first Garmin 10K in Zagreb, some will share the marathon distance with friends, and some will compete against the world’s best masters athletes. It is precisely this diversity that turns the marathon into a major city event and a meeting place for different generations,” said Marko Jakopović, President of the Zagreb Athletics Association.

Each year, the Zagreb Marathon confirms that sport is the best way to bring people together, and by gathering participants from Croatia and around the world, the race promotes togetherness, an active lifestyle and values that go beyond competition itself, the organisers conclude.