Athens Half Marathon

I have run the Athens Half twice, once in 2018 and again yesterday (2019). It is a great route in the central part of Athens. You start and finish in front of the Parliament Building and the Syntagma Square (meaning Constitution). You start going downhill for about 1 km, turn left and left and go uphill until you reach the bottom side of the Syntagma Square. Then you pass a few churches, The Zappeion, the stadium in which the first Olympic Games took place in 1896, the iconic Hilton Hotel, the Megaron (concert hall for classical music and opera), the American embassy, a few hospitals and museums, a few parks, and many, many beautiful buildings from the 19th century. There are only a few spectators along the way, but there are many volunteers, police officers and paramedics who are in a really good mood, there's live music at various spots, there are many, well-stocked water and food stations, with water, sponges, chocolates, Powerade, gels, fruits, etc. After getting your medal, you're given bananas, juice, water and Powerade for free. The technical area with toilets and changing facilities and bag deposit is a few metres away in the park. The weather was great this year. It was sunny and warm. The organisation is perfect and there's nothing to complain about. The route is demanding, because there are some long ascents and descents and on a warm and sunny day, you might suffer from the burning sun. Since it is not very crowded, it is a pleasure to run it.

One of the most difficult and yet beautiful HM in Europe... The route starts and finishes in front of the majestic Greek Parliament where the famous Greek Guards (Evzones) stand tall, still and proud! It follows main streets and highways of central Athens and gives you a perfect view of what urban Athens looks like... The street strictly asphalt with some major inclinations throughout the route and surely it is not the ideal race for your new PB...

Hilly