Vienna Marathon

Herzog starts with dampened expectations

The Vienna City Marathon on Sunday will once again be dominated by the hunt for a new men's course record.

The Ethiopian Chala Regasa as well as Bethwell Yegon and Felix Kibitok from Kenya could break the 2:05:08 barrier if the race goes perfectly. In the duel for the status of best Austrian in the expected time frame of 2:13 to 2:15, Mario Bauernfeind has the advantage, as ÖLV record holder Peter Herzog was slowed down by an illness at the beginning of April.

"We won't give ourselves anything"
"The immediate preparation was not optimal, but I will still give it my all. My goal is to be the best Austrian. We won't give each other anything," said Herzog on Friday. After a very difficult phase with injuries and illnesses, the VCM is an important intermediate step and piece of the puzzle for him to be able to think about times similar to his ÖLV record of 2:10:06 from 2020 again in the fall.

Recently, however, the Salzburg native has been more focused on finding joy again. "I had almost lost my love for running. It's no secret that the last one and a half or two years have been very mixed. But I've rediscovered the joy. Back to basics, that's exactly why I'm back," emphasized the 36-year-old. His viral infection at the beginning of the month may have dampened expectations somewhat, but it hasn't dampened his joy. "I definitely want to run the full marathon and enjoy the experience to the full."

Bauernfeind's momentum after his improvement to 2:12:49 in Frankfurt last October was slowed down by illness in the winter. However, the last three months of training have been promising, as the police officer, family man and self-declared "late bloomer" explained. "I've now had eleven very good weeks. I think I've come very close to my form from last fall, we'll know exactly on Sunday."

Goal: to be the best Austrian
The 33-year-old feels well prepared for the first full marathon in his home city, including the duel with Herzog. "I just want to put in a great performance in front of my home crowd. My big goal is definitely to be the best Austrian. I am definitely prepared and we will put up a great fight," said Bauernfeind. He is relaxed about the expected late winter conditions. He is rather glad that there will be no heat.