Ile-Ife Heritage Marathon Virtual Run

In 2018, the Ile-Ife Heritage Marathon was founded with the hope of building an event for the entire ancient city of Ile-Ife. For the past 4 years, runners, volunteers, spectators and community members have shown up on the streets of Ile-Ife to support one another and to turn an individual sport into a collective experience.

We hope to once again line 42.195km of our streets for the Fifth Edition on February 6, of 2022. The health and safety of everyone participating in and supporting the event remain our highest priority. In response to the ongoing public health concerns brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, the event organizers have had to reluctantly announce the decision to scale back the 2022 Edition of the Ile-Ife Heritage Marathon to virtual events and in-person participation to a maximum of 100 runners.  

On a personal note to the runners who have kept our race going for the past four years, we want to thank you for all the kilometres, for your loyalty and for your spirit. The Ile-Ife Heritage Marathon has always been your race and with your continued commitment to the sport, we will continue to be of service to our worldwide community.

The world is emerging from running in an unfamiliar marathon environment, with an uncertain finish line, and every runner knows that patience, resilience and determination are required to keep going. We are finally returning to the streets of Ile-Ife albeit we will be running adhering strictly to COVID 19 preventive measures. Wearing of Face Masks will be compulsory at the start and finish areas. There will be no spectators along the route and aid stations will be self serving. The occasion when we line up at the start line will be a celebratory moment and an uncompromising statement about the collective spirit of who we are as a running community. We are powerful, we are persistent and we will reach the finish line.

We have included the  additional distances of 10km and 21.1km to our usual 42.195km in the 2022 Fifth Edition. We announce with great pleasure that we will once again be able to run an official 42.195km from Obafemi Awolowo University Campus to the Ooni’s Palace.

10% of entry fees will be donated to the Osun State Branch of the Nigerian RedCross Society and 10% of entry fees will be donated to local schools.

The RedCross Society in its national and international capacity prevents and alleviates human suffering. While we believe education is critical for our collective future success.

Join the Ile-Ife Heritage Marathon team to support the Osun Branch of the Nigerian RedCross by signing up to run with us on the 6th of February, 2022.

The Ile-Ife Heritage Marathon Events Sign Up, run anywhere in the world and upload your time to receive:
✅ A chance to support the Osun State Branch of the Nigerian RedCross
✅ An E- Running Bib
✅ A Finishers Medal
✅ A Finishers Certificate
✅ A spot in the finisher Gallery
✅ A slot on a Global Leaderboard

✅ All runners are welcome to run the in-person race but slots are limited to 200