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The unparalleled success of the largest sporting celebration captivated Northern Greece and the entire country at the 19th Alexander the Great Marathon – bwin, making Sunday morning, April 6, more beautiful than ever and offering unique moments to 15,000 runners and thousands more who experienced the event as spectators!
With allies like perfect weather conditions, excellent race support, organizational excellence, and outstanding race courses, the champions of endurance running achieved remarkable performances, and all participants were able to pursue their personal records, within an event that has also consistently conveyed strong messages of social contribution and awareness since its inception in 2006. The inclusion of all social groups, alongside parallel events that thrilled children and adults alike, bringing joy to thousands of families, perfectly completed the celebration, breaking all previous records of enjoyment!
Runners of all ages and levels—from 9-year-old primary school students to 89-year-old Parthena Migiaki, who completed the 5,000 m race, the 82-year-olds Nikolaos Magoulas and Nikiforos Tsanaktzidis in the 10,000 m, 70-year-old Stavroula Papavasileiou who completed the 42.195 km marathon course in 4:03:18, as well as runners with disabilities—experienced the joy of participation and personal victory in the heart of Thessaloniki!
The global dimension of the event was once again impressive, with runners from 67 countries across five continents, including faraway places such as Puerto Rico, South Africa, Saint Kitts, the United Arab Emirates, and Malaysia.
In the marathon, Giorgos Menis triumphed, crossing the finish line on Megalos Alexandros Avenue at the level of the statue of the Macedonian leader in 2:24:20.
Second place went to Giorgos Kalapodis of AS Aigio Athinodoros in 2:26:24, marking his third consecutive podium finish after his victory in 2023 and second place in 2024. The top three was completed by Giorgos Minos of Olympiakos in 2:26:36.
“I wanted to enjoy the course, and I really did. I treated it like a training run. Entering Thessaloniki, from the 36th kilometer onward, I got emotional and goosebumps. Especially when I entered Nikis Avenue—it was thrilling! I came without much preparation, and the time I achieved is promising for the future. My goal this year is to run under 2 hours 20 minutes,” said Giorgos Menis after his victory, who competed and triumphed in the “Marathon of History” for the first time, following two successful participations and bronze medals in the Thessaloniki Night Half Marathon in 2017 and 2018.
In the women’s marathon, Deniz Dimaki of GAS Ilisos emerged victorious with a time of 2:53:04, moving one step higher compared to last year when she placed second in her first participation in the Pella-Thessaloniki course.
The top three was completed by Danae Maria Skalistiri, who celebrated achieving her personal goal of finishing under three hours for the first time (2:57:40), and Natasha Gavriiloglou of the “OSB Endurance Team” (3:02:08), adding another distinction to her collection after finishing second in the corresponding 2023 event.
“I started quite conservatively but managed to take the lead after the halfway point and stay in front until the end. There was a bit of headwind at the beginning, but I handled it very well and am very happy with my performance,” said the women’s marathon winner, Deniz Dimaki.
The race starts at the statue of Alexander the Great in Pella Central Square were given in order by Deputy Minister of Rural Development & Food Dionysis Stamenitis and Mayor of Pella Efstathios Fountoukidis, accompanied by the Deputy Regional Governor for Culture & Sports of Central Macedonia, Christos Mittas.
In the 10,000 m Health Run and Dynamic Walking race, Orfeas Giannatis of GS Iraklis won in 31:21, ahead of Konstantinos Paspaliaris of the “Mizuno Running Team” (31:37) and Giorgos Matzaridis of the “Matzaridis Running Team” (31:44).
“Although conditions were very good, I didn’t feel at my best today. Nevertheless, I decided to push, and it resulted in a good performance. The course is objectively easy. I am privileged to have come first, but the joy of victory belongs to all runners who finish and surpass themselves. That is the essence of sports: to run and enjoy it. Those who experience it understand!” said Orfeas Giannatis.
In the women’s category, Athanasia Kokkorou of “Stoikos Running Team” won in 34:51, with Cypriot Aikaterini Koutli of “Adidas Runners Athens” finishing second (35:38) and Anna Maria Gratzia of AGS Oin. Ag. Stefanou Attikis finishing third (38:12).
Winner Athanasia Kokkorou commented: “I am absolutely delighted! My performance was very good, and I achieved a major personal record. The weather was excellent, the course favorable for records, and the start time was ideal. I hope to return next year for an even better record! Competing with Koutli helped me achieve this performance, and I thank her.”
The first two race starts, at the Ampelokipoi Municipal Stadium, were given by the Mayor of Ampelokipoi-Menemeni and President of KEDKE Lazaros Kyrizoglou, together with Olympian and President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee Gender Equality Committee Anastasia Kelesidou, while the last start was given by Deputy Mayor of Sports of Ampelokipoi-Menemeni, Giorgos Kazantzidis.
In the 5,000 m Health Run and Dynamic Walking race, Kyriakos Voulgaris of GAS Ilisos won (15:36), with Cypriot Neophytos Lemonaris of “Lemon Team” second (15:40) and Giannis Kalogeropoulos of GS Akritas 2016 third (15:52).
In the women’s category, Maria Sioutka of GS Iraklis won (18:02), Despina Giotopoulou also of GS Iraklis was second (18:19), and Despina Floka of “Stoikos Running Team” finished third (19:38).
The 5,000 m race starts took place in front of Thessaloniki City Hall, given by the Mayor of Thessaloniki Stelios Angeloudis, Deputy Minister of Development Stavros Kalafatis, Deputy Regional Governor of Central Macedonia Kostas Gioutikas, MP Dimitris Kouvelas, Mayor of Kordelio-Evosmos Lefteris Alexandridis, Deputy Mayor of Sports, Youth and Volunteering Koula Giannakidou, Deputy Mayor of Financial Planning Giorgos Arvanitis, representative of EBETH Giannis Vassiliadis, and administrative executives of the organizing club MEAS TRITON, Vasilis Blesio and Afroditi Nestora.
Alongside the official competitive program, the 1,000 m race for primary school students took place with large participation. At the start at Aristotelous Square, children aged 9–12 ran, and immediately after finishing, they had the opportunity to participate in a special three-hour creative activities program.
Combined with the traditional dance festival for primary school students, the 19th Alexander the Great Marathon – bwin became a major celebration for the whole family!
Within the framework of the “Marathon of History,” the Panhellenic Road Championship for athletes with disabilities was held once again, organized by the National Sports Federation for Persons with Disabilities (EAOM-AMEA) with the support of the event’s Organizing Committee.
The strongest life message came from runners accompanying sliding wheelchairs with athletes with disabilities, such as the “Run With Me” team led by Achilleas Tsakiltzidis with five wheelchairs and additionally the visually impaired runner Dimitris Bosko, as well as the “Never Give Up” team of Thomas Tatsios with three wheelchairs and seventeen accompanying marathon runners, offering people with disabilities the joy of participation.
Additionally, Nikos Toulikas, an athlete with intellectual disability and autism, world champion in cross-country skiing and volunteer bone marrow donor, participated again in the “Marathon of History” in the 5,000 m race.
Many of the 87 supported social organizations ran with their own running teams, which are supported by and contribute to the Corporate Social Responsibility program of the two events. Simultaneously, as part of the environmental responsibility program, all materials used in the event were recycled, with special care taken to minimize environmental impact, intervening in eleven areas of environmental management, aiming for the Marathon to gradually become a fully “green” event.
In cooperation with the Panhellenic Federation for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders, a scholarship program will support outstanding Greek students exclusively for research on dementia prevention.
The impressive presence of 1,250 volunteers and volunteer organizations was also of special value, without whose decisive contribution the successful execution of the event would not have been possible.
The countdown to the event had peaked on Saturday (05/04) with the Alexandrian Peace Run, covering the distance from Ancient Pella to the Thessaloniki waterfront via 13 stations, symbolizing humanity’s quest for physical and spiritual fulfillment and the eternal pursuit of peace and dialogue among peoples.
The next events are now scheduled for Saturday, October 18, 2025, with the 13th Thessaloniki Night Half Marathon – ZeniΘ, and the anniversary 20th Alexander the Great Marathon – bwin on Sunday, April 26, 2026, which are expected to deliver even more thrilling experiences!
The Alexander the Great Marathon is a regular member of the Association of International Marathons (AIMS) and is conducted according to the rules of World Athletics on officially certified race courses. It is organized by MEAS TRITON in institutional cooperation with the Region of Central Macedonia, under whose auspices it takes place. It is also held under the auspices of the Hellenic National Commission for UNESCO, the Hellenic Olympic Committee, the Ministry of Interior (Macedonia–Thrace), the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports – General Secretariat of Sports, the Ministry of Tourism – Greek National Tourism Organization, and the Ministry of National Defense. Additionally, it is supported and approved for execution by SEGAS, the SEGAS Associations of Thessaloniki and Central Macedonia, and institutionally supported by the municipalities of Thessaloniki, Pella, Ampelokipoi–Menemeni, Chalkidona, Delta, Kordelio–Evosmos, as well as numerous institutional and volunteer support organizations, as listed on the official websites: www.atgm.gr, www.alexanderthegreatmarathon.org.
