When the SCC RUNNING organisers announced that the start and finish of the
anniversary event of the 30th real,- BERLIN MARATHON on September 27-28, 2003
would be set together on the avenue Straße des 17. Juni, runners and
experts around the world gave their approval, praise, and laudations.
"The decision to relocate to the Brandenburg Gate caused great
enthusiasm everywhere", proclaimed the pleased organisers around Race
Director Horst Milde. For potential participants, the idea of running the last
metres of the marathon across Pariser Platz and through Gemanys most famous
landmark, and then to finally reach the finish line in front of full spectator
stands in front of the Soviet memorial is already seen to be a great emotional
experience."
The decision to move the inline skate marathon to a separate sporting event
on Saturday, September 27, 2003 was also met with great approval. The
announcement of these changes has already caused a boom in the number of
registrants and a rush to the marathon office. The number of those wanting to
run has almost doubled compared to the same time last year, with 11,470
registrations so far.
Half of the registrations were made online on the internet at
www.berlin-marathon.com.
SCC RUNNING has set the limit for the inline skater marathon at 12,000 and
the limit for the runners at 35,000 participants.
The spring classic and counterpart to the fall marathon, the 23rd Bewag
BERLIN HALF MARATHON (21.0975 km), on April 6, 2003, also has a magnetic effect
on the runners. With 7,680 registrations so far, there are almost 50% more
registrations compared to the same time last year. Special training for this
race is offered every Saturday at 2:00 p.m. in the Tiergarten park at the
Siegessäule (Victory Column) in co-operation with the SFB Running Movement
under the direction of John Kunkeler for runners who do not belong to a
club.