On Saturday, September 5, Prague’s Republic Square transformed into the center of world distance running, welcoming athletes from a total of 98 countries. The 29th edition of the traditional RunCzech race was dominated by Spanish runner Rodrigue Kwizera and Ethiopian distance runner Chaltu Dida Diriba. As expected, Damián Vích and Tereza Hrochová became the fastest domestic runners. The adidas Women’s 5K Run was won by Josefína Šturmová.
The first item on the race day schedule was the 26th edition of the adidas Women’s 5K Run, which started at 6:00 PM. More than 4,000 participants lined up at the start, and the winner of the contest was 18-year-old Josefína Šturmová with a great time of 17:19. Every year, this race attracts thousands of women, not only because of its atmosphere but also thanks to its welcoming 50-minute time limit. “It was a race for all women—regardless of age or physical fitness. And that was the biggest motivation for me. It was my first race, so I didn’t worry too much about the final time; the main thing was to finish together with my sister, which we succeeded in doing. It’s great that races purely for women exist. I think it allows more of us to feel confident and safe while running,” described Venezuelan runner Angelika, who participated in the race together with her sister Henesis.
The main media attention was focused on 7:30 PM, when the Birell 10K Night Race started. It is no wonder—the elite start list included 42 names from 16 countries, 9 national record holders, and the star Rodrigue Kwizera, who announced an attack on the best European times.
While the beginning of the race went according to expectations, Kenyan Victor Kipruto Kiprono took the lead at the seventh kilometer, and if he would avoid unfortunate mistake in the final meters, he could have celebrated a victory. In the end, however, he had to settle for third place, and the king of the day turned out to be Rodrigue Kwizera after all, breaking the Spanish national record with a time of 27:15. Japan also recorded a new national record when Shunya Kikuchi finished in a time of 28:07. Ethiopian Chaltu Dida Diriba ruled the women’s field, crossing the finish line in a time of 30:04, 8 seconds ahead of her sister Robe Dida Diriba. Austria also had reason to celebrate, as its national record was lowered by Carina Reicht to a time of 31:56, marking the first time in history an Austrian woman ran sub-32 minutes. The best Czech runners were Damián Vích with a time of 29:12 and Tereza Hrochová, who crossed the finish line in a time of 32:15.
Famous faces also didn’t miss the opportunity to race in the streets of illuminated Prague. The women’s race was attended, for example, by model Michaela Leitnerová or TV Nova presenter Barbora Šimková. The 10-kilometer course, awarded a prestigious World Athletics label, was also tackled by former Mayor of Prague Zdeněk Hřib or influencers Mathias Hložek and Tomáš Rys. “It was awesome! After the half marathon, it was my second RunCzech race and we enjoyed it very much. I ran together with my girlfriend, for whom it was her first race, and we managed it together in 58 minutes. The night atmosphere was super, people cheered unbelievably, and the weather turned out beautiful, so it was really great to run,” shared his impressions Rys, who is known on social media under the pseudonym Hateris.
Positive reactions prevailed among other race participants as well. “Running through night Prague without cars at sunset doesn’t happen often. The views of Prague Castle never get old,” shared 24-year-old Michal. “On Saturday, it was my first race organized by RunCzech, and although I didn’t have my main running shoes and my pre-race diet wasn’t ideal either, it went well. It was my first time encountering pacemakers, and I have to say it’s a great thing to stick to someone like a tail. I set a goal of 50 minutes, I wanted to achieve it even considering the circumstances that didn’t help that time much, and I succeeded! In the end, according to the official time, I finished in 49:15, so total satisfaction,” concluded the young runner.
Both interviewed runners also praised the atmosphere around the course. “The atmosphere was great! People’s support tremendously helps in the mental battle, and the cheering definitely added some extra strength for the final stretch at a faster pace,” added Michal.
As standard, the health of all participants was overseen by paramedics from the Emergency Medical Service of the Capital City of Prague, cyclists with AED defibrillators, and a group of medical staff in running shoes called Running Doctors. “In total, we received 20 people requiring treatment, which is a very low number, and we are obviously very happy about that. According to my post-race information, all treated runners should be fine,” described project coordinator Dagmar Heroldová regarding this year’s favorable medical intervention record. And finally, an interesting fact—in addition to medical services, 2,293 kg of bananas, 904 kg of oranges, 29.5 thousand liters of bottled Mattoni water, and 2.7 thousand liters of Gatorade ionic drink were prepared for the runners.
