Strong Field at the 40th Wizz Air Budapest Half Marathon

6,200 foreign runners from 115 countries took part in the anniversary race, which is a huge increase compared to last year's record. The race was ultimately won by Hungarians: Gábor Karsai from Békéscsaba in the men's category and Lili Anna Vindics-Tóth from Budapest in the women's category.

Foreigners made up almost 40% of the individual field in the half marathon – internationally, few cities can boast such a high proportion of participants from outside the host country at a leisure event.

The largest foreign teams traditionally came from neighboring and Western European countries: in addition to the British and Slovaks, the Germans, Czechs, Poles, and French were also represented by groups of several hundred people this year. The running caravan also attracted a large number of runners from more distant parts of the world: more than a hundred came from Brazil and the United States, but also from Japan, China, Kenya, India and Australia.

Based on KPMG's analysis of previous years, foreign running tourists and their companions (1.5 people on average) arriving in Budapest stay for an average of 2.8 days, spending a total of approximately 40,000 guest nights in the capital. More than two-thirds of them arrive by plane, 62% stay in commercial accommodation (hotels, guesthouses), and another 30% stay in rented apartments.

Overall, the race had the largest field ever, with more than 20,000 runners registered. The 40th Wizz Air Budapest Half Marathon, which can be completed individually, in pairs, or in trios, was completely sold out, with organizers reporting a full house. The area next to the starting line was transformed into a real festival venue, visited by tens of thousands of people in addition to the runners.