European Athletics suspends Belgrade Marathon over debt – Race to be held

Head of Communication of European Athletics (EA), James Mulligan, confirmed for N1 that the activities of the Belgrade Marathon had been suspended until further notice due to debts.

– In September 2016, European Athletics became aware of the existence of certain problems related to the Belgrade Marathon's debts. We therefore suspended all further activities of the Belgrade Marathon, the support and promotion of the race on our part. That has been the case since September, and we've now deleted the Belgrade Marathon from the EA calendar of upcoming events. The suspension of further promotion by European Athletics and not listing the race in the calendar will remain in effects until we are provided with solid proof that the problems have been solved. We are waiting for BM's feedback, and the deadline is the end of February – Mulligan explained.

The Belgrade Marathon previously reported that “old, certified enemies of the Belgrade Marathon have notified the local public about the financial problems of the Belgrade marathon company, due to which its license has allegedly been revoked by European Athletics”.

The Belgrade Marathon company said that they were resolving the issues with full consent of and in line with an agreement with European Athletics, and that the event itself had not been brought into question.

– It's not news that the Belgrade marathon company has financial liabilities. The reasons for this, as well as our plan to solve those problems, are familiar to everyone concerned, including European Athletics. But it is news that financial claims of the Belgrade Marathon are several times bigger than our liabilities, that BM has pressed charges against its biggest debtor and that the court's decision is expected, and that there are no court procedures against BM for collection of debts – says the press release by the Belgrade Marathon.

The Belgrade Marathon has announced that the event will be held on April 22, 2017, and that it will be “the best and most attended events in its long history”. As stated, 4,500 marathon and half marathon participants from 58 countries from all continents have applied so far, and the organizers expect there to be 8,000 participants.

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