Abbott World Marathon Majors runners set sights on double delight
On Sunday March 5, more than 3,000 participants in the Tokyo Marathon will be aiming to complete their AbbottWMM Six Star journey and achieve a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title in the process.
Going for the record of the ‘most people to earn a Six Star Medal at a single marathon’, runners in the Six Star program will contribute to the record attempt by completing the Tokyo Marathon and collecting their Six Star medal after crossing the finish line. This race signals the final Major of their journey which also includes the Boston, TCS London, BMW Berlin, Bank of America Chicago and TCS New York City Marathons.
Tokyo will mark a major milestone for the Six Star program as the total number of finishers since the program began will pass 10,000. The previous largest contingent of Six Star finishers at a single Major was 732 at the Tokyo Marathon in 2019. It was only back in 2019 when the 5,000 Six Star finishers mark was reached at the Boston Marathon, showing the increased interest and appetite for this global challenge in recent years.
Dawna Stone, CEO of Abbott World Marathon Majors said, “We are thrilled that the Tokyo Marathon is back in full force this year and is once again able to welcome international runners. We will see an unprecedented number of Six Star finishers in Tokyo, and we are delighted to be able to celebrate this moment in partnership with the Guinness World Records and the Tokyo Marathon.”
Katie Forde, SVP Brand & Digital at Guinness World Records added: “It’s our privilege to be working with World Marathon Majors and to be attending the Tokyo Marathon to verify an achievement which, due to the pandemic, is at least three years in the making. Good luck to all participating runners, we’ll see you at the finish line.”
To celebrate their additional race-day achievement, a commemorative medal is on sale now, giving Six Star runners a chance to show off an impressive three medals post-race [Tokyo Marathon, Six Star and Guinness World Records]. Once the record has been ratified on race day, an official presentation will be made to the Tokyo Marathon Foundation.
