Double Hungarian victory and a historic participation record marked the finish of the anniversary 40th SPAR Budapest Marathon Festival’s classic Sunday distance. Among the men, Máté Vásárhelyi, and among the women, Viktória Nyikos were the first to break the tape at the biggest Hungarian marathon of all time. A total of 40,851 people registered for the various distances, with the marathon—the main event—drawing the largest field; half of the participants were international runners. A special milestone of the day was welcoming the 100,000th marathon finisher in the history of the Budapest Marathons at the finish line. Over the course of the weekend, 100,000 people visited the festival area set up on Pázmány Péter Promenade and lined the race routes at the largest mass-participation sports event ever held in Hungary.
After Saturday’s opening, Sunday once again set the country and the world in motion: runners arrived in Budapest from every corner of Hungary and from 119 countries to take part in the greatest Hungarian mass-participation sporting event ever, which broke every existing record. A total of 20,000 people registered for the Sunday distances. The marathon start took place continuously over 25 minutes, and the field flowed like an unbroken, 26-kilometer “snake” along a route that passed Budapest’s most beautiful landmarks.
Beyond the records, the weekend was about extraordinary human stories and historic moments. At the 40th anniversary race, the organizers from Budapest Sportiroda welcomed Ádám Komáromi at the finish as the 100,000th marathoner in the history of the Budapest Marathons. One of the most moving moments was the return of Judit Földing-né Nagy, a seven-time former winner of the race. After an 11-year hiatus, at age 60 she completed the distance one last time in honor of the 40th jubilee. She was accompanied along the route by leading figures of women’s running, including Katalin Kovács Garami, Réka Brassay, Ida Kovács, and Nóra Szabó; at the finish she was greeted with flowers and a commemorative plaque created for the occasion by the organizers and representatives of the Hungarian Athletics Association.
The day’s most memorable feat was delivered by Péter Boronkay, multiple world and European champion paratriathlete, who completed the 42.2 kilometers pushing his friend, Dr. András Nagy, who has a physical disability, in a special running chair. Firefighters Tibor Borbás and Elek Keller also achieved a similarly superhuman effort by running in protective gear weighing 15 kilograms.
“It’s hard to put into words; we’re still under the spell of the weekend. It was an unforgettable sight when the field set off on Sunday morning and the mass of runners surged forward for 25 minutes. But the real miracle wasn’t the sheer numbers—it was the countless individual stories: we saw a returning legend, a superhuman struggle for a friend, and a hero running for a noble cause. The record-breaking 40th SPAR Budapest Marathon Festival showed just how much running can mean. This success is also the shared achievement of the 1,400 people working behind the scenes. We close this historic weekend with immense gratitude and pride,” said Árpád Kocsis, CEO of Budapest Sportiroda.
The oldest marathoner in the field was Ferenc Kis from Csongrád, aged 81. Alongside the extraordinary performances, the Budapest running festival’s colorful, indispensable characters were present once again: István Ferge, who ran carrying two Hungarian flags, and István Kocza, who completed the distance in a Rubik’s Cube costume.
The 14th edition of the “Theatre on the Run” relay also set a record at the 40th marathon, turning into a true theatrical summit with 25 teams. Among the runners were artists and theatre professionals from the Hungarian State Opera, the József Attila Theatre, the Vígszínház, the Radnóti Theatre, and the Örkény Theatre. The overall winner was the Győr National Theatre, while in the women’s competition the team of the Hungarian Radio Choir triumphed.
To refresh the massive field, volunteers distributed 38,000 liters of water, 7,500 liters of isotonic drinks, and nearly 1,700 kilograms of bananas over two days, while 3.5 tons of finisher medals awaited those crossing the line.
