So here we are in 2012, and you did it: You’ve made a New Year's resolution to be more active and start running.
Surely, running is cheap and easy and you can do it pretty much everywhere. Well, for those of you who are super eager and live in Switzerland (or want to visit), here's some good news!
Like so many things in Switzerland, it was not the Swiss who invented running, but they do it very well. Sure, the Swiss are no Masai or Tarahumara runners, but they do love to run. With a population of 7.7 million people (about 300'000 people less than the population of New York City), there are no less than 55 major running events in Switzerland each year, and 26 of which are longer than a marathon (42.195 kilometers)!
Needless to say, running is big in Switzerland. People of all ages love to get out and run from village to village, around lakes and up mountains.
For the past eight years, the first marathon of the year worldwide has been held in Zürich! The Neujahrsmarathon (New Year's Marathon) starts each year at exactly midnight in Schlieren, just outside of Zürich. With fireworks screaming into the night’s sky all around and headlamps bobbing on the heads of the participants, close to 600 people take off for a run of either a quarter, half or a full marathon. The official allotted time for the full marathon is five hours.
Thinking of getting out to one of Switzerland’s many running events this year? Here’s a list that might spark your interest:
If you’re not into long distance yet, many of the below events feature half marathons. Coming to Zurich? Check out the ZüriLaufCup a series of runs around 12 km in distance. Two great runs are also the Aletsch Halbmarathon and the Murtenlauf. For a full list of all of the running events in Switzerland, check out the Swiss Athletics site.
Date | Distance & Elevation | Cost (CHF) | Event |
22. April 2012
8:30 AM |
42.195 km
80m / 80m |
130.- | Zürich Marathon. |
5. May 2012
7:35 AM |
63.3 km
1215m / 1215m |
20.- | 3/2 Marathon Muttenz. |
5. May 2012
10:00 AM |
715m / 715m | 20.- | Muttenz-Marathon. |
6. May 2012
8:30 AM |
42.195 km
220m / 270m |
90.- | Genève Marathon. |
6. May 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
250m / 250m |
75.- | Winterthur Marathon. |
12.-13. May 2012
12:00 PM |
24 Std.
flach |
150.- | Self-Transcendence 24 Stundenlauf. |
13. May 2012
0:00 AM |
12 Std.
flach |
100.- | Self-Transcendence 12 Stundenlauf. |
18. May 2012
5:00 PM |
100 Meilen
flach |
100.- | Bielersee XXL. |
19. May 2012
9:00 AM |
50km
flach |
50.- | Ultra Bielersee. |
2. June 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
1800m / 635m |
90.- | LGT-Alpin-Marathon Liechtenstein. |
8.-9. June 2012
10:00 PM |
100 km
500m / 500m |
135.- | 100-km-Lauf Biel. |
8.-9. June 2012
10:15 PM |
42.195 km
240m / 180m |
70.- | Nachtmarathon Biel. |
16. June 2012
7:15 AM |
75 km
2952m / 2952m |
90.- | Défi Val-de-Travers. |
16. June 2012
7:15 AM |
42 km
1346m / 1346m |
90.- | Défi Val-de-Travers. |
17. June 2012
8:00 AM |
48 km
1650m / 1650m |
50.- | Ticino Ultramarathon. |
23. June 2012
9:15 AM |
42.195 km
2682m / 402m |
95.- | Graubünden Marathon. |
24. June 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
100m / 100m |
50.- | Fyne Nature Marathon. |
6.-8. July 2012
8:00 AM |
201 km
11’500m / 12’700m |
260.- | Swiss Irontrail, T201. |
6.-8. July 2012
9:00 PM |
141 km
8400m / 9600m |
230.- | Swiss Irontrail, T141. |
7.-8. July 2012
5:00 AM |
110 km
7300m / 7300m |
150.- | Trail Verbier Saint-Bernard: La Boucle. |
7. July 2012
5:30 AM |
100 km
3600m / 3500m |
230.- | SwissJura-NatureTrail. |
7.-8. July 2012
5:30/6:00 AM |
2 x 100 km
7100m / 7100m |
400.- | SwissJura-NatureTrail. |
7.-8. July 2012
8:00 AM |
71 km
4800m / 4800m |
200.- | Swiss Irontrail, T71. |
7. July 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
1944m / 444m |
115.- | Zermatt Marathon. |
7. July 2012
10:00 AM |
50 km
1545m / 1925m |
180.- | SwissJura-NatureTrail. |
7.-8. July 2012
10:00 AM |
2 x 50 km
3120m / 3980m |
390.- | SwissJura-NatureTrail. |
7.-8. July 2012
10:00 AM |
61 km
4200m / 4340m |
90.- | Trail Verbier Saint-Bernard: La Traversée. |
28. July 2012
7:00 AM |
79.4 km
2600m / 2600m |
183.- | Swiss Alpine Marathon, K78. |
28. July 2012
7:00 AM |
42.195 km
500m / 1150m |
150.- | Swiss Alpine Marathon, C42. |
28. July 2012
10:30/11:30 AM |
42.195 km
1720m / 1550m |
162.- | Swiss Alpine Marathon, K42. |
4.-5. Aug. 2012
8:15/7:50 AM |
2 x 42.195 km
3900m / 3900m |
150.- | Internationales Gondo Event. |
11.-12. Aug. 2012
10:30 AM |
? | 120.- | R’ADYS Mountain Marathon. |
18. Aug. 2012
6:30 AM |
80.3 km
5000m / 4674m |
160.- | Mountainman Ultra. |
18. Aug. 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
2561m / 2005m |
120.- | Mountainman Marathon. |
27. Aug. -
2. Sept. 2012 10:00 PM |
300 km
22’000m / 22’000m |
EUR 510.- | PTL: La Petite Trotte à Léon. |
30.-31. Aug. 2012
9:00 AM |
109 km
7100m / 7300m |
EUR 100.- | TDS: Sur les Traces des Ducs de Savoie. |
31. Aug. -
1. Sept. 2012 10:00 AM |
98 km
5600m / 5800m |
EUR 100.- | CCC: Courmayeur-Champex-Champerix. |
31. Aug. -
2. Sept. 2012 6:30 PM |
166 km
9500m / 9500m |
EUR 147.- | UTMB: Ultra-Trail International du Tour du Mont Blanc. |
8. Sept. 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
1823m / 298m |
140.- | Jungfrau-Marathon. |
9. Sept. 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
1823m / 298m |
140.- | Jungfrau-Marathon. |
22. Sept. 2012
7:00 AM |
111 km
1500m / 1500m |
200.- | The Wayve. |
22.-23. Sept. 2012
12:00 PM |
24 Std.
flat |
130.- | 24 Stundenlauf. |
23. Sept. 2012
0:00 AM |
12 Std.
flat |
90.- | 12 Stundenlauf. |
23. Sept. 2012
8:30 AM |
42.195 km
200m / 200m |
95.- | Run to the Beat Basel. |
6. Oct. 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
2640m / 2640m |
63.- | Marathon Raid(e) de Moutier. |
7. Oct. 2012
11:00 AM |
42.195 km
75m / 75m |
EUR 55.- | Sparkasse-Marathon. |
14. Oct. 2012
9:00 AM |
40.5 km
1540m / 1540m |
70.- | Napf-Marathon Emmental. |
28. Oct. 2012
9:00 AM |
42.195 km
120m / 120m |
100.- | Lucerne Marathon. |
28. Oct. 2012
10:10 AM |
42.195 km
100m / 136m |
75.- | Lausanne-Marathon. |
11. Nov. 2012
9:15 AM |
42.195 km
100m / 100m |
45.- | Maratona Ticino. |
18. Nov. 2012
10:00 AM |
42.195 km
520m / 520m |
33.- | Frauenfelder Militärwettmarsch. |
18. Nov. 2012
10:30 AM |
42.195 km
520m / 520m |
42.- | Frauenfelder Marathon. |
1. January 2013
0:00 AM |
42.195 km
60m / 60m |
60.- | Neujahrsmarathon Zürich. |