Press Release - Zurich Marathon - 10/2/06

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

                    Starting shot will be fired in 6 months

Sunday, April 1st, 2007

It's no April Fools joke: the 5th Zurich Marathon will indeed take place on 
April 1st, 2007, six months from now. Time to lace up your running shoes 
and start training! Those who prefer to train under the watchful eyes of 
certified running instructors can sign up for the official Zurich Marathon 
preparation courses. Starting in November, guided weekly running training 
sessions will be offered. The lesson plans are created by former Olympic 
marathon participant and one-time marathon record holder Bruno Lafranchi 
(2:11.12), and will be adapted to the level of the individual participants. 
More info can be found at www.zurichmarathon.ch.

Fast finish times in Zurich

For the 5th Zurich Marathon, the organizers of the race will provide 
pacemakers for every 15 min. time segment to allow the runners to improve 
their personal record. This means, for example, one pacemaker each for 
runners with a projected finish time of 4:15h, 4:30h, 4:45 etc. With a 
total change in altitude of less than 25 meters the course in Zurich allows 
for fast finish times. Viktor Röthlin set a sensational Swiss Record in 
2004 in Zurich (2:09.56). A comparison with the world record course in 
Berlin shows that extremely fast finish times can be achieved in Zurich. 
Despite the fact that more than 5 times the number of runners entered the 
race in Berlin, only 19 participants achieved a finish time of less 2:20h. 
In Zurich, 17 runners achieved this goal. The results are no less 
impressive on a national level: 16 out of the 30 best marathon running 
times (Swiss seasonal records, men) were achieved in Zurich, 3 in Basel, 2 
in Geneva, and 1 each in Lausanne and Winterthur. 8 of the top performances 
were achieved outside of Switzerland. 

You can register for the 5th Zurich Marathon online at www.zurichmarathon.ch.

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