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May 4, 2024

Brussels Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Brussels Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 3.9

Organization 3.7

Spectators 2.6

Number of comments: 37 [displaying comments 21 to 31]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 > ]

R. H. from Houston, TX (8/29/2006) "Decent marathon that's worth the effort" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Brussels Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 The Brussels marathon wasn't anything spectacular nor was it anything terrible; it was a very average marathon. I don't have any real awesome positives or negatives to say. Some thoughts though: The course was nice. I'd say about 20 miles of it is run in the rural areas outside Brussels and the other six are inside the city. The rural areas are tree-covered and very isolated, so if you're looking for great crowd support, this isn't your marathon. The start and finish locations are great. My one minor complaint is about the location of the baggage pick-up at the finish. After running a marathon you'll have to walk for almost a mile to pick up your bags, so it's not the most convenient set-up I've seen. That's about it. Brussels is a great European city that definitely shouldn't be missed. The Brussels Marathon won't disappoint you, nor will it wow you either.
M. B. from Brussels, Belgium (8/29/2006) "Tough and beautiful green race" (about: 2006) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 Brussels Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 This is a hilly course with a field of 1,000 marathoners (2,600 for the half marathon - separate start). The race passes through nice and green areas of Brussels and is challenging but not impossible. Organization is OK. Refreshments every 2.5K or so. Weak points: ugly medal and so-so T-shirt, no pasta party and ridiculous expo.
M. S. from London England (8/28/2006) "Challenging Course" (about: 2006) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Brussels Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Good organization, nice course - despite several big hills and cobblestones, and an interesting city. The only downside was the limited support....!!!!
Bradley White from Dusseldorf , Germany (8/27/2006) "Brussels Half Information!" (about: 2006) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Brussels Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Just giving some insight on my feelings about this race. Beautiful! The start was cluster-free and the temperature was perfect running weather. I had a PB on this course, but I will warn you that there are some very challenging portions on this course! The organization for the half and the full was fantastic; the half starts about an hour and a half behind the full so the finish (as you can imagine) is with runners of your caliber! Water stops and sponges were all over the place! Only difficulty I had with the course was the carpet at the end - it wasn't natural and threw me off my sprint at the end! Overall, if you're in Europe in August, this a great race!
J. S. from Leuven, Belgium (10/19/2005) "Beautiful (but hard) course" (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 A very beautiful course which takes you through some very nice parts of Brussels. Several rather steep hills make it very hard though. The fact that this is a small marathon (1000 participants) makes it ideal for pacing yourself (or for following the excellent pacers). The organization can improve: drinks were great (water and sport drinks every 5 km or so) and well organized, but we could have done with a bit more than 3 small bananas during a whole run. There were no dressing rooms at the start. A tent or so would have been nice for those who didn't come in their running shorts. And I didn't notice any toilets along the course. One real disappointment though: the spectators. I'm a bit embarrassed about the cool reaction of my fellow countrymen. Next time, hopefuly, the spectators will show a bit more enthusiasm.
Y. P. from Athens, Greece (9/6/2005) "Not bad at all!" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Brussels Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 It was a great course around nice scenery. Though in the last meters cobbled (stone) road was covered with carpet, this did not help. The risk for injuries was high. Anyway, the organisation was great (no pasta party, though). I heard last year it was bad, so I guess they have really improved the race this year!
K. K. from Brussels (8/29/2005) "Green and a bit hard" (about: 2005) First Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I ran the half marathon. The weather was very good; not too hot for my liking, although some thought otherwise. Lots of nice things to see. Not so flat for a race in 'le plat pays' (the flat country). I read a lot of bad comments on last year's marathon; I think that there must have been substantial improvements.
M. B. from Brussels, Belgium (8/29/2005) "Lessons from 2004 learned" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Brussels Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The 2005 Brussels Marathon was an enormous success. Compared to 2004, the course has been completely changed and the race goes through very nice and green areas. This is not an easy one: two very steep hills at KM 15 and 36. Organization was top-notch from packet pick-up to the finish. Water stations every 3 km or so: this is unusual in Europe. The weather was just great. Field was about 1000 runners for the marathon and 2500 for the half (separate start). I would definitely recommend this one: it is worth the trip to Brussels.
M. B. from Brussels, Belgium (3/18/2005) "Brussels could offer more... and will" (about: 2004) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Brussels Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The 2004 course was not so nice but the organizers will change the route in 2005. I agree with most of the comments made here before, but I would give this marathon a second chance. In 2005 the route will be way nicer, following mostly the 20K race held in May. Brussels deserves a high standard marathon and organizers are working hard to it.
M. B. from Sirault, Belgium (11/13/2004) "Not a bad experience" (about: 2004) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Brussels Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Some of the comments make this one seem like a complete disaster. I don't think it was all that bad. Keep in mind the positives: (1) The first running of this event (after a gap of many years.) There is room for 'lessons learned' on a first-timer, and a bit premature -- I think --to vow 'never again'. (2) The entry price. A steal at around 30 dollars. (3) A nice finisher's medal (especially given the low entry fee.) (4) A beautiful start at the Atomium and finish in the Grand Place. (5) Logistics (bag pick up and bus transport back to start) went well. (6) A small runner's field. At this point, I certainly wouldn't recommend a long drive or flight to make this marathon (unless you're a Brussels nut!), but if you're in the neighborhood it might be worthwhile to see what improvements ING (the sponsor) does next year.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 > ]

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