Marathon Tours & Travel (MTT), ‘the world’s largest specialist running travel brand’, is celebrating 45 years this November since it first took runners to what is now the world’s largest marathon – the TCS New York City Marathon.
Founded by runner and adventure travel visionary Thom Gilligan, the NYC Marathon was the first event that MTT took runners to back in the late 1970s. The iconic New York race originally grew out of a grassroots club event in Central Park, where just 55 runners crossed the line at the inaugural edition in 1970.
Similarly, Marathon Tours & Travel got started in the early days of the running boom and has grown to become an official travel agency for many of the world’s most popular running events across all distances and genres.
With offices in the USA, UK and Australia, MTT’s mission is to help runners reach their goals. This might involve racing the Abbott World Marathon Majors – Boston, London, New York, Berlin, Chicago and Tokyo – or competing in adventure and ultra events in a range of destinations.
The MTT team created and manages the Antarctica Marathon & Half-Marathon and the Madagascar Marathon & Half-Marathon. Two other unmissable events in its own portfolio are the Patagonia Running Festival and the Amazing Maasai Marathon in Kenya.
MTT formed the exclusive Seven Continents Club (SCC) back in 1995. The Antarctica Marathon & Half-Marathon were founded specifically so that its customers could experience completing a marathon on every continent.
SCC currently has over 10,151 members and is still growing. So far 33 men and 62 women have completed a half-marathon on all seven continents while 633 men and 348 women have completed the marathon distance.
To date, more than 297,727.92 miles have been covered by SCC finishers, which means its runners have run the length of the equator more than seven times. The club also offers special VIP services to support its globetrotting distance runners.
Jeff Adams, President of Marathon Tours & Travel said “We of all people know it’s a marathon not a sprint, and I’m super proud of the exceptionally talented team that since 1979 have dedicated themselves to offering runners and their travel companions extraordinary destination experiences while exploring the seven continents one stride at a time.
“We got our pacing exactly right and the business has deservedly enjoyed huge growth and success in this time.”
www.marathontours.com
www.marathontours.co.uk
