85 years and not a bit quiet: Felix Pauli rocks the Vienna City Marathon!

85 years and not a bit quiet: Felix Pauli rocks the Vienna City Marathon!

On April 6, 2025, this year's Vienna City Marathon took place, with a special highlight: Felix Pauli ran the route in a time of 6:04:57 hours on his 85th birthday. At the finish of Kathrin Widu, the managing director of the Vienna City Marathon, he was celebrated with a cake. Pauli, who was the oldest participant in the competition, was the only starter in his age group and was cheered by the spectators. Krone reports that Pauli remained calm despite the initial difficulties of getting to the start in good time due to overcrowded subways. Even forgetting his start number in the cloakroom sack could not get him out of the socket because he quickly received a replacement number.

Felix Pauli, who was 53 years old when he ran his first marathon, had to struggle with the consequences of floods in Tullnerfeld last year, which forced him to help self -help and repair his house. He had completed the work by Christmas 2024. In an interview, Pauli said that his childhood taught him in the war to stay in stressful situations. Together with him on the track, Gerhard Wally, 66, who took part in his 754th marathon and mastered the route in 5:20:50 hours. Wally also reported the cold weather conditions, but he enjoyed the support of many spectators along the route.

age group winner and participating

Among the age group winners were Helmut Schwar (M60) from Vorarlberg with a time of 2:53:01 and Arno Ritter (M55) from Vorarlberg, who completed the marathon in 2:46:33. The oldest participants also include Josette Mathieu from France, who won in the W70, and Felix Pauli, who repeated victory in the M80 category with a time of 5:26:57

an event full of emotions and memories

The Vienna City Marathon not only offers a platform for sporting performance, but also space for personal stories and memories. Participants like Felix Pauli and Gerhard Wally embody the spirit of the marathon - a connection between sport, community and personal triumph. The marathon is not only a race, but also an event that brings people together from all situations and combines them through the challenges and successes. The results of the runs are recorded as part of the AGE Group World Rankings, which also offers the participants the opportunity to qualify for the Age Group World Championships 2023. MarathonStistik.com checks and captures this to further promote the purpose of the sporting event.