Cardiff to host World Half Marathon Championships

The 2016 IAAF World Half marathon is to be held in Cardiff, making it the third UK host for the championships in recent years, with both Bristol and Birmingham staging it successfully in 2001 and 2009.

It marks a golden four year period of major world championships for the sport, with the IAAF and IPC World Championships already scheduled for London in 2017 and preceded by the World Mountain Running Championships scheduled for Conwy, North Wales in 2015.

Welsh Athletics CEO Matt Newman said:

"This is a coup for Cardiff and Wales.

"It is a huge endorsement of the excellent work that has been put into the Cardiff Half Marathon over the past decade.

"It is a major achievement for a small nation like Wales to be able to win an IAAF major championship event and our successful bid proved the power of the partnerships we have been able to build in recent years with the Welsh Government and Cardiff Council."

The championship will be held in March 2016 and so is sure to attract contenders for the Rio Olympic marathon as it is perfectly timed to fit in with their training plans.