Marathon in Berlin: Extreme pedestrianing on a car-free Sunday

Tens of thousands gathered again in downtown Berlin on Sunday for Germany's largest pedestrian event. Many people use the traffic-calmed city for an endurance run. More crowds lined the roadsides to cheer on the runners.

Some of the runners were so emotional that they completed the more than 40 kilometer route in barely more than 2 hours.

The almost largely car-free Sunday traditionally takes place in Berlin on the last weekend in September. To achieve this, a 42-kilometer stretch across the city will be blocked from drivers. Around 1,800 police officers regulated the remaining traffic and ensured safety so that no one drove onto the closed route.

Around 50,000 people used the car-free zone to run the Berlin Marathon. They started in the zoo. The circuit led over Alexanderplatz and Kreuzberg down to Steglitz and back to Mitte to the Brandenburg Gate. The fastest was Guye Adola from Ethiopia, who crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 2 minutes and 50 seconds.

Adola wasn't the only one with a long journey. According to the organizers, people from 162 nations came to Berlin specifically to take part in the pedestrian event. Thousands of people had already taken part in a 5 kilometer long run on Saturday. Numerous bands played along the entire route on Sunday under the bright blue sky, so that the event resembled a folk festival in places.

Hundreds of wheelchair users also use the route, which is completely barrier-free for once, for a sporty Sunday outing. Almost 20 years ago, the organizers of the race explained to taz why the route is so attractive for people with wheelchairs: 42 kilometers await them without steps, steep ramps, high curbs and bumpy pavement that otherwise hinder their everyday life.

Daniel Ulmann Marcel reached the finish line on his handbike at a crazy pace in the morning after barely more than an hour. That corresponded to an average speed of just over 40 kilometers per hour.

Drivers stood on the side of the road in envy. Some, who once again had not noticed anything, were loudly upset. But they sometimes had to wait for hours until the route was opened to them again.