The Han River, along which the 1988 Olympic marathon and Seoul Ekiden was ran
The Seoul International Women's Ekiden (Korean: 서울 여자 역전경주; 서울 역전 경기), also known as the Seoul International Women's Road Relay or the Seoul Ekiden, was an international women's ekiden (marathonrelay race) held in Seoul, South Korea.[1]
History
The event was founded in 1992, four years after the 1988 Summer Olympics were held in Seoul. Following events like America's Ekiden, it was one of a series of high-profile ekidens held outside Japan in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Athletes competed representing their country in a seven-stage race with some others like the Japanese corporate team and national 'B' teams also competing. All editions were for women only and held on the Seoul Olympic marathon course. After an inaugural win by Kenya, "Ma's Army" (the Chinese national team led by Ma Junren) won the 1993 race, setting a course record of 2:13:14 that remains over four minutes faster than any other team's performance in the race's history.[2][1]
Following the first two editions, the Seoul Ekiden was won by Russia 9 times in a row from 1994 to 2003 (the race was not held in 1997). The race was not held after 2003.[2]
