Venice Marathon Running Oct 28, 2012

It may not be the biggest marathon in Europe, but the Venice Marathon – held every year in October – is arguably the prettiest.

After all, it’s Venice!

Founded in 1986, this great road race manages to attract some pretty big names thanks to a not-so-shabby €10,000 prize purse for the winner in both the men’s and women’s categories. However, anyone hoping to grab the winnings should keep in mind that the Venice Marathon’s prize is cut in half if the winner takes longer than two hours and ten minutes to finish.

The race is currently sponsored by the Venice Casino, so its official name is the Casino di Venezia Venice Marathon.

The Venice Marathon course can change every year, but promises a fairly flat run – seeing as the city itself is fairly flat. The course actually starts outside of the city, normally in the small town of Stra near the beautiful Villa Pisani. From there, runners pass through stunning towns along the Riviera, then speed along the center of Marghera and Mestre, before finally entering Venice proper and finishing on the bank of the Riva dei Sette Martiri.

The Venice Marathon is capped at 7,000 entrants. Venice Marathon fees are €42 until December 31 (the year before), €48 from January 1 until March 31 (year of), €56 from April 1 until June 30, and €64 from July 1 until September 30.

Athletes with residences outside Italy pay roughly an additional €20–€30 depending on when they register.