Running the Jerusalem Marathon is a guarantee of a unique course passing close to the historical sites of the capital of Israel. 40,000 people took the start of one of the five distances on the program on March 17. We Rock Sport was there for the 10 km.
While the Jerusalem Marathon is still young, the 42.195 km race has grown since its first edition in 2011. Twelve years ago, 10,000 runners took part in the five distances offered by the organizers. On March 17, 2023, 40,000 participants will line up for the marathon, the half marathon, the 10 km, the 5 km and the Family Race (1.7 km). The day before, many runners were already seen running quietly in the old city, while bar mitzvahs were celebrated by families at the foot of the walls of the old city of Jerusalem. White is the order of the day for this party which celebrates the passage to religious majority status of young Jewish boys aged 13. On the ground, dishes are piled up while music and songs give a festive atmosphere on this marathon eve.
If it rained during our jogging on the first day of our arrival on the spot, the sun takes its rights during the week. The marathon should be held in ideal conditions with a temperature of 15°C, perfect for running. I will run the 10 km on my side, but the route of this short race will take us through several holy places of the city. Same principle for the half and the marathon where runners will only have to look up to admire all that makes the richness of Jerusalem.
Located in the Judean mountains, the capital of Israel offers a much greater difference in altitude than most marathons in the world's other major capitals. Each year, the 42,195km route accumulates between 600 and 700 D+. It is not the place to beat your record for the distance, but at least the race is far from boring and you have to know how to relaunch (or manage) on the numerous climbs that mark the course.
On the day of the race, I arrived early to soak up the atmosphere. While the start of the 10 km is given at 9:30 am, the best marathoners have already arrived. This is the case of the Kenyan winners Kiprotich Noah Kigen in 2h18 for men and Njuguna Margaret in 2h52 for women. The crowd is huge on the start area and most of the participants have put on their red jersey offered by the organizers. If the starts are often tense on the races of the same type in France, we clearly feel here that the atmosphere is more festive. Most of the participants are not looking for a time trial, the main thing is to have a good time with their friends and to reach the finish line.
I manage to sneak in the first lines without any difficulty so as not to lose too much time at the start in the crowd. A DJ sets the mood and the heated participants immediately respond by dancing and singing the latest hits. Like the city, the runners are Jewish, Muslim or Christian and are mostly locals (10% of the registered runners are not Israeli). As far as security is concerned, nothing distinguishes this event from that of another capital. The atmosphere is festive and the faces are relaxed, as one could be at the start of the Paris Marathon. I was only quickly controlled at the entrance of the site and I only met a few policemen and soldiers during the whole morning.
The start is given and I immediately get into a rhythm. I quickly find other runners who have the same pace as me. I quickly overtake the pacemaker with the 50' flag and find myself behind the 45' flag. I follow in his footsteps. I know that I can run faster than 45' in the 10 km, but I've taken a good look at the course and the difference in altitude means that the race will be quite demanding. So I play it safe and anticipate a time of around 45 minutes. After a few hundred meters in the Saker Park, the largest park in the city, the first slopes take us to the Jaffa Gate, an ancient passage in the fortifications of the old city of Jerusalem. We can see the Tower of David. This ancient citadel located northwest of the Armenian Quarter was built in the 2nd century BC and was rebuilt several times by the Romans, Byzantines, Arabs and Ottomans.
If the passage in the old city is short on this 10 km (the other races will also remain only approximately two kilometers in this zone), it makes it possible to take the pulse of what remains the heart of one of the oldest cities in the world, divided moreover in four districts: Jewish, Christian, Moslem and Armenian. Later on, we will have the opportunity to stroll around for a while to see the unavoidable sites related to the three Abrahamic religions. One thinks of course of the Esplanade of the Mosques (located on the Temple Mount and which includes the famous Dome of the Rock and its golden roof as well as the Al-Aqsa Mosque), the Wailing Wall (the first holy place according to the Jewish religion and which represents a part of the retaining wall of the esplanade of the ancient Temple of Jerusalem) or the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (the holiest Christian site of the Old City where the crucifixion and the burial of Jesus are commemorated)
While the race continues at a good rhythm, we pass again the ramparts by the door of Sion, always located in the Armenian district of the old city. One sees on the left the seven gilded domes in the shape of onion of the superb orthodox church of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine as well as the mount of Olives. In addition to the fact that this hill in the east of Jerusalem is an important place for all three monotheistic religions (including the Ascension for Christians), it is also the site of the largest Jewish cemetery in the world. To get there on foot, the path is very steep but the view from the top of the Mount of Olives is worth the detour. The view of the old city is sublime (see below).
Finally, the last kilometers of the race bring us back to the west passing not far from the Monastery of the Cross, the huge Israel Museum with 500,000 works and the Knesset (the Israeli parliament). The crowd of runners has long since stretched out on the slopes leading to the old city. Some around me even end up walking. I managed to run to the finish line, finishing this 10 km in 45'47'' at the 88th place out of 5 042 runners. The route is demanding but the exceptional setting of the capital of Israel clearly makes it a unique race in the world.
