Elite athletes and local runners take part in Doha Marathon by Ooredoo 2023 on Friday

The starting gun for the Doha Marathon by Ooredoo – one of the most hotly anticipated events of Doha’s sporting calendar – goes off at 6.15am on Friday with local running enthusiasts lining up alongside elite international athletes at the start line.All categories of the event sold out well in advance, with 8,000 runners participating across the range of distances from the 1km kids’ race to the full 42.2km marathon. The event kicks off at Parade Pavilion, The Amir's Grandstand, Al Corniche, with runners then heading towards Katara, Lusail and back to Al Corniche.The full marathon starts at 6.15am, followed by the half marathon at 6.30am. The 10km category kicks off at 8.50am, with the starter’s gun going off for the 5km category at 9.40am. Finally, the 1km category for kids begins at 10.30am.The total prize pool this year is around QR1mn for all categories, while all participants who finish their category will get a medal.All participants crossing the finish line in all categories from 5km upwards will be entered into a prize draw, with the grand prize a Volkswagen T-Roc courtesy of event sponsor Q-Auto.This year’s race village will feature a number of food vendors – Oakberry, Charger, Graze, GoHome, CHIA Nation, Flat-White and Green Cola – while Angry Birds characters will be in attendance to distribute vouchers to the top runners in the 1km and 5km kids’ races.Ooredoo hosts the Doha Marathon by Ooredoo in partnership with Qatar Athletics Federation.Platinum sponsors for this year’s event are confirmed as Qatar Tourism, Q-Auto and Holding Group, with Qatar Airways and Seashore as Gold sponsors. Silver Sponsors are Al Rayyan Water, Aspetar, QIC and Qommunication.