More than 16 thousand runners from 60 countries: Almaty Marathon 2025 finished with a great number of records

28 September. A traditional September morning, when the streets of the dynamic Almaty city belong to its residents – energetic runners, spectators, active volunteers and young people, dedicated organisers, health professionals, rescue teams, and the municipal administration.

How the Day Х starts

The marathon starts almost at night. The organisers come to the Start/Finish area on Republic Square a couple of hours before the first guests arrive and wait for the earliest participants with volunteers. By the time of 5 a.m. the area opens and first hundreds of runners who have been looking forward to this day the most appear.

At 6 a.m. the Square is full of thousands of participants. KRIDA Fitness Club assists them in warming up correctly. In just a half an hour the first runners start – they are the marathoners and participants of Ekiden relay race.

“The Fourteenth Almaty Marathon has gathered 16, 149 runners from 60 countries. Every participant helps popularise sports and supports charity projects of the Fund. Together with our partners we are working on making the infant disability level in Kazakhstan lower and making sports more available to kids,” notes Galimzhan Yessenov, a Chairman of the Board of Trustees at “Courage to be the First” CF.   

The participants included 7,111 women (44.4%). The number of running mothers and women grows every year, and the organisers introduce new conditions for their comfort. This year, the Almaty Marathon Start/Finish area has had mother-and-child rooms, and different hygiene supplies in the women’s restrooms.

0.5% participants of the marathon are disabled people, participants of inclusive teams. This is the first time in the history of Kazakh marathons: the Almaty Marathon has installed special-purpose restrooms for the participants with special needs.

Distance Race

A record-breaking number of 1,500 runners crossed the starting line of 42.2 km – it is more than 9% of the total number of participants. The absolute winner of the Marathon has become Vitaliy Shafar from Kyiv showing the result of 2 hours 19 minutes 38 seconds. The Olympic athlete outrun a previous record-holder of the route - Ilya Tyapkin from Bishkek. Women category: Anastassiya Derkach from Chelyabinsk has finished with the result of  2 hours 41 minutes 24 seconds and set a new women record.

Next participants to start after the marathoners were half-marathoners. The record of the 21.1 distance route was beaten by Nursultan Keneshbekov from Issyk-Kul (1 hour 2 minutes 44 seconds). The previous record belonged to Rinas Akhmadeyev from Kazan (1 hour 3 minutes 45 seconds). Among the girls, the fastest finishers were Ainuska Kalil kyzy from Bishkek (1:17:32) and Svetlana Kudelich from Almaty (1:17:44).

The most popular marathon distance was 10 km. Here, 8,500 runners and Nordic walkers started in clusters at 7:00 and 7:15. Among the runners there were 88-year-old Duzya Mavlyutova, 83-year-old Valiakhmet Mavlyutin and Ulan Khassenov. Elderly participants run the Almaty Marathon every year and inspire others with their endurance.

In the Ekiden relay race, the Kazakhstan MASTERS team entered the Book of Records as the oldest team in the history of relay races in Kazakhstan. The total age of the participants is 425 years. Among them are experienced athletes of different generations: Marat Baltabayev (78 years old), Amegulsin Mussylmanova (78 years old), Bakytzhan Bektenov (65 years old), Aitkali Orynbassarov (66 years old), Ulan Khassenov (83 years old) and Sunkar Karabalin (56 years old).

“I finished the 10 km race. It was my first time running in Almaty, and the atmosphere here is simply amazing,” shared one of the runners. 

The fastest runners in the distance were Nodirbek Mutalipov from Tashkent (31 minutes 45 seconds), Rakymzhan Kelmanov from Almaty (32 minutes 16 seconds) and Islam Abulkhanuly from Aktobe (32 minutes 28 seconds). Among the girls were Zhanna Mamazhanova Turi from Almaty (35 minutes 52 seconds), Anastassiya Slepnyova from Saratov (36 minutes 49 seconds) and Azizakhon Mirzakbarova from Tashkent (37 minutes 19 seconds).

Inclusive teams also crossed the starting line: students and teachers from Insight School, the first independent and inclusive school in Kazakhstan, the Centre for Social Inclusive Programs Non-Governmental Foundation, children from the Rukh family home, and a team from the Kunde café, which employs people with special needs.

Saltanat Murzalinova-Yakovleva, President of the Centre for Social and Inclusive Programs NGF, described how the participants completed their first races, accompanied by professional athletes from the Kazakhstan NPA Federation. 

International Marathon Level

Most of the Almaty Marathon participants are local residents (14,785). This is a special sporting event, as one Almaty resident notes:

“Today is Sunday. A very sunny day, the day of the annual Almaty Marathon. People of all ages participate, and it is a wonderful event for the city.” Runners and guests describe the Marathon as ‘a celebration,’ ‘adrenaline rush,’ ‘fun and exciting,’ ‘the happiest day,’ and ‘a productive morning.’

The number of participants from other cities and countries is growing annually. This year, 1,363 foreigners (more than 8% of participants) came specifically for the Marathon. The top 3 countries were: Russia (513), Kyrgyzstan (180), and China (142). The event was also attended by citizens from the regions of Asia and the Pacific (226), Europe (166), North and Latin America (40), Africa (3) and the Middle East (93).

The Almaty Marathon race routes have been certified by AIMS and World Athletics. With official results, participants can qualify for other international races. 

Final Words

Saltanat Kazybayeva, Almaty Marathon Race Director and Executive Director of “Courage to be the First” CF, shared the results, “Today’s Marathon was record-breaking in many ways: in terms of the total number of runners, the participation of marathon runners and international athletes, and the results on the distances. But for us, the success of the event is measured not so much by numbers as by emotions. We love Marathon Day for meeting inclusive teams, senior runners, active parents and their athletic children, energetic youth, and thousands of runners from all corners of Kazakhstan and many countries around the world. This inspires us to continue and constantly improve.”

Registration for the next Marathon opens almost a year in advance. Do not miss your slot — this year’s Almaty Marathon was sold out.