Vainio & Petros take European Championships marathon golds - Largest winning margin ever!

Finland's Alisa Vainio showcased a supreme display of endurance in the women's marathon at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham. The Finn was unphased in the face of a historically harsh route, settling into her own dominant pace from the start.

No other athlete came close to Vainio after she took the lead right at the start, creating a gap to her competitors by as early as 500 meters. Her solo run finished in golden style with an especially impressive time of 2:22.26 considering the tough route - also a new championship record at the European Championships.

The rest of the medal places finished around 5 minutes back from Vainio, and this was the largest winning margin ever in a women's marathon at the European Championships. In the men's we have to go back to 1958 to find as dominant a marathon victory.

Team GB's Abbey Donnelly valiantly fought to win bronze in front of the home crowd, while the silver medal went to Hungary's Lili Anna Vindics-Tóth, 4 minutes and 55 seconds behind the winner. Donnelly's medal was Britain's first ever female medal in the marathon, and she paved the way for Team GB to win the team gold before Italy and Spain.



The men's marathon wasn't quite as big a whitewash, but before the end it was rather clear that Germany's Amanal Petros was going to take the gold. Like Vainio, he also finished with a championship record time of 2:09.11.

Petros broke away from the pack after a drink spot around 26 kilometers, establishing a solid lead that held until the end. The German probably eased up by the end, allowing the rest of the medal winners to get within 7 seconds of him. The gold was never in doubt though.

The final few kilometers saw a big battle for the remaining medal positions among 8 men, with Italy's Pietro Riva coming out on top and getting the silver. Israel's Gashau Ayale managed to take home the bronze, giving his country their first medal of the games - they also took home the marathon's team gold with a solid showing!

Also check out: European Athletics Championships 2026 Medal Table

You can find the full results from the men's and women's marathons in the 2026 European Athletics Championships below.