Below is our press release:

Due to Covid-19 and the uncertainty associated with the settlement of major events, the BMW Oslo Marathon will not be possible to carry out as planned. Prohibition of large crowds and demands for strict infection control measures make it impossible to gather close to 25,000 runners at Rådhusplassen on 19 September.

• We work every day to lower the threshold for physical activity. We want to make it easy for everyone to have the opportunity to participate in our event. This year, it will unfortunately not be possible to arrange the Oslo Marathon as we are used to. A lot can happen before 19 September, and when the authorities come up with a new assessment of the infection control measures for the autumn, it is possible that they will ease what is applicable today. However, we do not think it will give us the opportunity to create a good and safe implementation of the event . We see that a crowd of up to 100,000 people, including the public, is not justifiable and therefore choose to cancel, says the Oslo Marathon

When asked by the Ministry of Health and Care Services whether, among other things, the Oslo Marathon can go as planned in September, Minister of Health Bent Høie (H) writes by e-mail:

• The government has announced that events for more than 500 people will not be opened until 1 September at the earliest. What happens after 1 September is difficult to say for sure, but the requirement to facilitate at least one meter distance at all major events will probably apply throughout 2020. With such a requirement, it will be difficult to implement the events that mentioned here. "

Last year, there were almost 23,000 registered and the Oslo Marathon aimed for a potentially sold-out event on 19 September before it came to a complete stop in mid-March when Norway closed down. Every year, the traditional race has colored the capital, but this year the race will be different, without a geographical boundary.

• We think it is very boring not to have the opportunity to invite our runners to Oslo on September 19, but our goal is always to make it easy for everyone to have the opportunity to experience the joy of running and physical mastery. This pandemic situation gives us two choices. Cancel and wait until next year, or think alternatively. We have been going lately, and we look forward to inviting the whole of Norway and the world to a virtual running party on 19 September, says the organizer.

The Oslo Marathon was first held in 1981. Only once before has the race been canceled, in 2003. At that time, too few participants were the reason. Now that most major events have to be canceled, a virtual edition of the Oslo Marathon will provide new opportunities.

• Now that the decision to cancel has been made, we look ahead. The Oslo Marathon has its very own atmosphere that extends beyond the town hall square and around the course, which we want to recreate to the best of our ability. It will be a challenge that we look forward to taking on. September 19 will still be a memorable day, the Oslo Marathon concludes

Everyone who has registered for the BMW Oslo Marathon 2020 will receive an e-mail with more information regarding their registration.

Do you want to participate in the virtual edition of the BMW Oslo Marathon? Sign up here

For further comments contact:

Press officer, Edwin Ingebrigtsen
mob .: 47623281
email: edwin@oslomaraton.no

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Read our press release:

Due to the threat of Covid-19 and the uncertainty associated with arranging major events, it is not possible to arrange the (?) BMW Oslo Marathon as planned. Prohibition of large public gatherings and strict infection control makes it impossible to gather close to 25,000 runners in Oslo, September 19th 2020.

“ Every day we work towards lowering the threshold for physical activity. We want to create a race event where everyone has the opportunity to participate. This year, unfortunately, it will be very difficult to organize the BMW Oslo Marathon the way we would like to. The situation could change before September 19th, and when the government in Norway will announce their decisions for this case they might ease on the rules and guidelines enforced today. We still do not think they will ease enough to make it possible for us to arrange the BMW Oslo Marathon. Gathering a crowd with close to 100,000 people including the spectators is not safe and therefore we choose to cancel our event ”, says Oslo Marathon

In 2019 almost 23,000 people signed up for the BMW Oslo Marathon, and this year they were looking forward to a potentially sold-out event. But when the shutdown of Norway happened in March the entries stopped. For almost 40 years the Oslo Marathon has colored the streets of the capital with running and joy, but this year the race will be different and without a geographical boundary.

“We think it is very sad that we are not able to invite our runners to Oslo this year, but we still want to give them the opportunity to experience joy through running, and the sense of achievement crossing a finish line can give you. The pandemic gives us two choices. We can cancel and wait til next year, or think outside the box and create an alternative. We chose to think outside the box, and are happy to invite all of Norway or even the world to a virtual race on September 19th ”, says the organizer.

Everyone signed up for BMW Oslo Marathon 2020 will receive an email with further information about their entry.

S ign up for the virtual version here

For further comments contact:

Press officer, Edwin Ingebrigtsen
phone: +47 47623281
e-mail: edwin@oslomaraton.no