Dreaming of a Revival for the Gyeongbu Ekiden Marathon

On November 14, 1955, while the scars of war still lingered, runners set off from Busan toward Seoul amid the sound of a starting gun. Rather than a relay focused on overtaking the person in front, the Gyeongbu Ekiden Marathon—which connected station to station to cross the entire peninsula—took its first steps carrying the aspiration for reunification. As they ran across a devastated land, their running shoes quickly wore out, but the runners patched them with car tires and managed to cross the finish line. This tournament, which served as a gateway for Korean marathoners with figures like Choi Yoon-chil who competed in the 1948 London Olympics playing a midwife-like role, became a springboard for the sport. Every year, participants looked toward North Korea from Imjingak, sang the national anthem to wrap up the passing year, and promised the next meeting while dreaming of the day they could run all the way to Sinuiju.

This relay race, which continued for over 60 years, came to an end in 2016. As traffic volume surged significantly, it became difficult to guarantee runner safety through complete traffic control, and with the collapse of the elite runner pool, securing more than 10 runners per team grew even harder. Although legends nurtured through this event, such as Hwang Young-cho and Lee Bong-ju, voiced that "without the revival of the Gyeongbu Ekiden Marathon, there is no revival of Korean marathons," unlike the mushrooming amateur events, no sponsor readily stepped up to host an elite competition featuring around 100 runners.

This year marks exactly 10 years since the last event was held. Running creators 262WAVE recreated the Gyeongbu Ekiden Marathon. To overcome the aforementioned limitations, six carefully selected runners ran and ran non-stop from Busan to Imjingak over two days and one night. Battling occasionally lost paths, sleep deprivation, and physical exhaustion, they completed the 543 km course in 35 hours and 17 minutes. Kim Yong-soo, a producer at 262wave, reflected, "While planning this challenge, we were able to reaffirm the value of the Gyeongbu Ekiden Marathon as a cultural heritage." Stone (Won Hyung-seok), who ran as a participant, dreamed of its revival, stating, "If we adopt a format where high-level amateurs run together, the shortage of runners can be resolved."

Although the running boom, which many expected to be short-lived, remains intensely hot, domestic elite marathons are passing through an endless tunnel. Last spring in London, the 2-hour barrier—once considered a human limit—was broken, but domestically, Lee Bong-ju's Korean record (2 hours 7 minutes 20 seconds) has remained unshaken for over 26 years. Kim Young-jin, the final MVP of the Gyeongbu Ekiden Marathon and currently a coach for Gyeonggi Provincial Government, appeared on Sports Mug's Monthly Running and choked up, saying, "I feel sorry that I couldn't run better during my active days to hand down a better environment to my younger juniors. Since there are young runners with potential, I hope you will give them as much support as criticism."

> Running Day and Night! The Tumultuous 543km Marathon Completion from Busan to Imjingak

In 2026, the number of athletes who have completed a full marathon within 2 hours and 20 minutes stands at 14 domestically, compared to 187 in Japan. Japanese track and field heralds the start of the year with the Hakone Ekiden, a sectional relay race featuring university student athletes. Its popularity is immense, with over 56 million people tuning in to watch the 102nd tournament on TV this year. Marathons are often called a battle against oneself, but sectional relay races are team competitions that foster cooperation and solidarity among peers within that framework. Japanese society regards the Hakone Ekiden as a standard of sports education that dramatically visualizes "community" and "connection." The six runners who recreated the Gyeongbu Ekiden Marathon similarly spoke with one voice, saying, "The moment I fall behind, the burden on my colleagues grows, so I gritted my teeth and held on."

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