Cologne Marathon

The inaugural race took place on as the "Ford Cologne Marathon" () with at least 13,000 registered runners, a world record for inaugural marathons at the time. The 2020 in-person edition of the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, with all registrants given the option of obtaining a refund (minus an administration fee). ==Course==

Since 2013 the course starts at Ottoplatz in Deutz and leads the runners through the city of Cologne and finishes at Komödienstraße beneath the Cologne Cathedral. The marathon time limit is 6 hours. , 2008 on , with Colonia-Haus and the visible in the background, 2011 ==Events and categories==

From the beginning there has also been a contest for inline skaters. They start ahead of the runners and try to finish the course in the time limit for skaters, which is 2:30 hours. This competition as well as all others including inline skates were ultimately held in 2013. Since 1998 there has also been a contest for handcyclists. In the last years it has been more and more difficult to utilize the starting field because of diverse interests. To countervail, the management of the marathon created new events and contests, which all take place at the same course on the same day. Here is a list of all competitions: • Marathon – • Half marathon – • Inline marathon – for skaters • Handcyclist marathon • Run – a full marathon plus a half marathon • Run&Skate – first run a half marathon and afterwards skate a complete marathon • Run&Skate – first skate, and then run with the peloton • of Cologne – run (half marathon), skate , run • School Relay – schools may set up their own relay teams, the handover is at fixed points • Cultural Relay – any group of people that is committed to any kind of cultural activity (e.g. carnival groups), may set up relay teams (again with fixed handovers). These teams are often dressed up specially. == Winners ==

at the midpoint of the race Key: Course record (in bold) Marathon Half marathon is a two-time winner of the marathon and four-time winner of the half marathon. after winning the half marathon in 2016 ==Development of starting field==