MOSCOW, October 13. /TASS/. Moroccan runner Younes Bennar has won the Moscow Marathon. The athlete, who was announced for the race as a pacemaker, completed the distance in 2 hours 11 minutes 34 seconds.

Second place went to his compatriot El Mahjoub Dazza (2 hours 11 minutes 38 seconds). Russia's Dmitry Nedelin was third (2 hours 11 minutes 40 seconds). Thanks to this result, Nedelin became the winner of the BRICS Marathon League.

Bennar broke the record of the Moscow Marathon, which belonged to Russian national Artyom Alexeyev. In 2016, he covered the distance in 2 hours, 13 minutes and 40 seconds. Last year's winner of the competition was Nedelin.

"It was the coldest marathon of my life," Bennar later told TASS. "I was very well prepared for this race, but I was not sure about my victory. This success was a big surprise for me," he pointed out.

In the women's race, Russia's Alexandra Morozova was first (2 hours 30 minutes 35 seconds). Ethiopia's Shimel Nurit Yimam was second (2 hours 30 minutes 51 seconds) and Russia's Marina Kovaleva was third (2 hours 30 minutes 53 seconds). Russian national Louiza Dmitriyeva was forth (2 hours 31 minutes 27 seconds), which allowed her to become the winner of the BRICS Marathon League.

The Moscow Marathon in 2024 was held for the first time in two days: October 12 and 13. The first day included a ten-kilometer race and a children's race. The Moscow Marathon has been held since 2013 and gathers tens of thousands of participants from all over the world. The route runs along the central streets of Moscow. In 2021, the Moscow Marathon was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Moscow Marathon is part of the BRICS Marathon League, the creation of which was announced during the 26th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The BRICS Marathon League also includes the Kazan Marathon and the White Nights Marathon in St. Petersburg.