Atyrau Marathon: man in a kilt and mother with child in stroller

The annual Atyrau Marathon was held on 14 April in Atyrau, with distances of 42 km, 21 km, 10 km, 3 km and 1.2 km. This year the sports event attracted around 3,000 runners from Kazakhstan and other countries.

“We are glad we organised such a massive sports event in Atyrau. We want to note; the current race was the biggest yet, attracting close to 3,000 participants”, the organisers say .

To participate in the first three distances, a monetary contribution was required with proceeds going to charity. Start and finish times for all distances was on Beybarys Square. At the solemn finishing ceremony, the winners were awarded cash prizes and all who finished received commemorative medals.

Amegulsin Musylmanova who is 72 years old was the oldest participant in the marathon. Among runners with disabilities, 58-year-old Paralympian, Oleg Sysolyatin from Petropavlovsk was awarded for his “will to win.”

Oleg Sysolyatin shared “I have run my 120^th marathon today. I am very glad that I participated in such a large event.”

Attracting special attention was a Scottish citizen who ran in a kilt (a traditional men’s skirt) and a mother who participated with a child in a stroller.

For the third time, 25-year-old, Bazarbay Dautaliyev from Astrakan was the first to finish the distance of 42 kilometres becoming the absolute male winner. The best result for women runners was achieved by Amina Zinorov. Incidentally, Dautaliev always runs under the flag of Atyrau when competing in the Atyrau Marathon.

“I prepared diligently and knew I would be the first person to finish,” said Bazarbay.

And will you participate next year?

“Of course.”

by Farkhat Abilov