Lidingöloppet facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lidingöloppet
Lidingöloppet, Saturday September 27, 2008. Starting group 1A, B och C, 30 km men/women, some minutes after the start 12:30 pm from Koltorps gärde.
Date	September
Location	Lidingö, Sweden
Event type	Cross country running
Distance	Long-distance
Primary sponsor	TCS
Established	1965
Course records	Men's: 1:33:33 (1998) Isaac Chemobo Women's: 1:51:57 (2019) Sylvia Medugu
Participants	8,355 finishers (2022) 5,328 finishers (2021) 12,389 (2019)

Lidingöloppet is a huge annual running race held in Lidingö, Sweden. It's a cross country running event, which means runners go over different types of terrain, not just flat roads. The main race is 30 kilometers (about 18.6 miles) long.

This event is super popular! Around 15,000 people take part in the 30 km race each year. When you add in the shorter races, it becomes the biggest cross-country running event in the whole world. It always takes place on the last weekend of September.

About Lidingöloppet

How the Race Started

The idea for Lidingöloppet came from sports journalist Sven Lindhagen. He wanted a big running competition for everyday joggers. It was meant to be like the famous Vasaloppet ski race, but for runners.

The first Lidingöloppet was held in 1965. Only 644 people participated that year. But the race quickly grew in popularity. By the 2010s, about 40,000 people were joining in! In 2022, there were 23,265 participants.

Two people, Karl Axel Karlberg and Sven Gärderud, helped make the race happen. Many long-distance runners who train at the Bosön sports center in Sweden often join Lidingöloppet. Today, a big IT company from India called Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) helps sponsor the event.

Race Distances and Records

The main race is 30 kilometers. There are also shorter races for different ages and abilities. This makes it a fun event for everyone.

The fastest time ever for the men's 30 km race is 1 hour, 33 minutes, and 33 seconds. This record was set in 1998 by Isaac Chemobo from Kenya.

For the women's 30 km race, the record is 1 hour, 51 minutes, and 57 seconds. Sylvia Medugu from Kenya set this amazing record in 2019.

Past Winners

Here are some of the winners of the main 30 km races. The green background shows the fastest times ever recorded for each race.

Men's 30 km Winners Year Winner Nation Time (h:m:s) 1965 Berndt Ekström  Sweden 1:52:21 1966 Tim Johnston  United Kingdom 1:45:26 1967 Karl-Åke Asp  Sweden 1:50:44 1968 Rolf Hesselwall  Sweden 1:46:26 1969 Christopher Wade  Sweden 1:41:58 1970 Ingvald Midelf  Sweden 1:45:00 1971 Tapio Kantanen  Finland 1:41:45 1972 Reino Paukkonen  Finland 1:40:51 1973 Reino Paukkonen  Finland 1:38:21 1974 Rolf Hesselvall  Sweden 1:42:00 1975 Jukka Toivola  Finland 1:40:10 1976 Max Holmnäs  Sweden 1:42:54 1977 Jouni Kortelainen  Finland 1:42:18 1978 Lars Enkvist  Sweden 1:41:03 1979 Öivind Dahl  Norway 1:38:05 1980 Knut Kvalheim  Norway 1:37:51 1981 John Graham  United Kingdom 1:40:56 1982 Jarl Gaute Aase  Norway 1:38:23 1983 Öivind Dahl  Norway 1:39:34 1984 Knut Kvalheim  Norway 1:38:43 1985 Jarl Gaute Aase  Norway 1:38:25 1986 Suleiman Nyambui  Tanzania 1:36:38 1987 Tommy Ekblom  Finland 1:38:17 1988 Tommy Ekblom  Finland 1:37:26 1989 Douglas Wakiihuri  Kenya 1:36:10 1990 Simon Naali  Tanzania 1:37:45 1991 Boniface Merande  Kenya 1:38:41 1992 Benson Masya  Kenya 1:37:12 1993 Josphat Ndeti  Kenya 1:37:29 1994 Benson Masya  Kenya 1:37:02 1995 Paul Evans  United Kingdom 1:36:01 1996 William Musyoki  Kenya 1:35:14 1997 Isaac Chemobo  Kenya 1:35:16 1998 Isaac Chemobo  Kenya 1:33:33 1999 Barnabas Kosgei  Kenya 1:36:01 2000 Barnabas Kosgei  Kenya 1:35:51 2001 Francis Kirwa  Kenya 1:39:49 2002 Augustus Mbusya  Kenya 1:36:51 2003 Mustafa Mohamed  Sweden 1:37:29 2004 Mustafa Mohamed  Sweden 1:40:47 2005 Silas Sang  Kenya 1:37:39 2006 Johnstone Chebii  Kenya 1:39:18 2007 Joseph Kimisi  Kenya 1:40:44 2008 Mustafa Mohamed  Sweden 1:37:10 2009 Japhet Kipkorir  Kenya 1:39:42 2010 Japhet Kipkorir  Kenya 1:36:30 2011 Lewis Korir  Kenya 1:34:54 2012 Lewis Korir  Kenya 1:35:26 2013 Lewis Korir  Kenya 1:35:23 2014 Lewis Korir  Kenya 1:37:13 2015 William Morwabe  Kenya 1:37:37 2016 Japhet Kipkorir  Kenya 1:37:52 2017 Napoleon Solomon  Sweden 1:38:47 2018 Napoleon Solomon  Sweden 1:37:42 2019 Robel Fsiha  Sweden 1:37:55 2020 Linus Hultegård  Sweden 1:43:46 2021 Samuel Russom  Eritrea 1:36:56 2022 Samuel Tsegay  Sweden 1:38:00 2023 Diego Estrada  United States 1:39:11

Women's 30 km Winners Year Winner Nation Time (h:m:s) 1996 Malin Ewerlöf-Krepp  Sweden 2:05:20 1997 Heléne Willix  Sweden 1:56:55 1998 Maria Andersson  Sweden 2:05:53 1999 Jennie Åkerberg  Sweden 2:03:15 2000 Annelie Södergårds  Sweden 2:10:26 2001 Malin Ewerlöf-Krepp  Sweden 2:02:04 2002 Lena Gavelin  Sweden 1:53:13 2003 Helena Olofsson  Sweden 1:58:26 2004 Lena Gavelin  Sweden 1:54:43 2005 Lena Gavelin  Sweden 1:58:39 2006 Lena Gavelin  Sweden 2:00:00 2007 Isabellah Andersson  Sweden 1:57:34 2008 Anna Rahm  Sweden 1:53:20 2009 Malin Ewerlöf-Krepp  Sweden 1:57:46 2010 Ulrika Johansson  Sweden 2:00:40 2011 Charlotte Karlsson  Sweden 2:02:55 2012 Sandra Eriksson  Finland 1:59:54 2013 Therese Olin  Sweden 1:57:50 2014 Annelie Johansson  Sweden 1:57:28 2015 Annelie Johansson  Sweden 1:58:15 2016 Maria Larsson  Sweden 1:56:54 2017 Maria Larsson  Sweden 1:55:19 2018 Sylvia Medugu  Kenya 1:53:00 2019 Sylvia Medugu  Kenya 1:51:57 2020 Hanna Kumlin  Sweden 2:04:43 2021 Sylvia Medugu  Kenya 1:55:03 2022 Sylvia Medugu  Kenya 1:54:57 2023 Carolina Johnson  Sweden 1:54:25 Note: Women could run the 30 km race before 1996. However, there wasn't a special competition class for them, so no official winner was chosen.

Images for kids

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  Stone commemorating the birth of Lidingöloppet 1965 at Koltorps gärde. The stone was erected in 1999.