Running scene: Paphos & Hassan
Destination races keep growing—this year’s Paphos Marathon drew about 4,500 participants from 66 countries, with over 55% international runners, highlighting the travel appeal of road races. Meanwhile Olympic champion Sifan Hassan pulled out of the London Marathon with an Achilles injury, a late development that reshapes elite fields this spring (travelandtourworld.com) (dawn.com).
TUI signed a multi‑year agreement to become title sponsor and the exclusive travel and distribution partner for the Cyprus Marathon, with the contract running for at least three years and the first TUI‑branded race staged on March 8, 2026. (tuigroup.com) Organisers routed the event along the Paphos waterfront, opening near Aphrodite’s Birthplace and using Paphos Medieval Fort as a central finish area to showcase renovated promenades and coastal views. (tui-mml.com) Hungary’s László Tarnai won the marathon in 2:19:38, according to official timing sheets published by the race organisers. (cyprusmarathon.com) Local race posts and social media reported Tarnai’s time as a new course record, described by organisers as roughly a ten‑minute improvement on the previous best. (findglocal.com) Karen Williamson topped the women’s race in 3:08:10 and was listed as competing in the F50 age class on the official results list. (cyprusmarathon.com) Race timing summaries show 552 marathon finishers, nine sub‑3:00 performances and a median finishing time around 4:09:25 for the full marathon field. (marathonview.net) Event sustainability partners placed PMD recycling bins along the route to collect plastic bottles, and organisers ran a “YOU RUN, WE PLANT” tree‑planting initiative as part of the race’s environmental programme. (greendot.com.cy(cyprusmarathon.com)) Race organisers confirmed the change to the London Marathon’s elite list on March 24, 2026, noting the athlete had suffered an Achilles problem after an incident on a treadmill about six weeks earlier that curtailed her preparations. (dawn.com(skysports.com)) With the adjustment to the start‑list for the April 26 London Marathon, organisers and athletics outlets highlighted defending champion Tigst Assefa and world champion Peres Jepchirchir as the headline remaining contenders. (worldathletics.org(run247.com))
