Everything is ready for the fast 10K.

The Belgrade Fast 10K, the fourth race of the season organized by the Belgrade Marathon, will fully live up to its name. More than 20 elite runners from Kenya and Uganda will compete on the course at Friendship Park in Ušće, many of them with times under 28 minutes. That’s why a new course record is rightfully expected—28:26 in the men’s category and 32:12 in the women’s.

The race is scheduled to start on Saturday, September 6, at 6 PM. The entire event is organized in cooperation with the Serbian Athletics Federation, and the Belgrade 10K – Nike Run will also serve as the National 10K Championship. Among the competitors will be Serbia’s top middle- and long-distance runner, Elzan Bibić, who is in outstanding form and has announced his attempt to break the national record:

“I’ve heard the competition will be tough, with a large number of outstanding runners coming, especially from Kenya, and that truly makes me happy and gives me extra motivation. The organizers deserve all the praise, because the Belgrade 10K will be a true running spectacle,” said Elzan Bibić, adding:

“Everything points to the course record being broken. My training stats show that I’m ready to run under 28 minutes, which would set both a new personal best and a national record. That would also give me the chance to fight for first place. It won’t be easy at all, since everyone knows the Kenyans set an extremely fast pace right from the start, and it’s all about who can keep up. I’ll give it my all to challenge them and battle for the win.”

At a recent meet in the Belgian town of Oordegem, Bibić set a national record in the 5K, finishing the distance in 13 minutes and 13 seconds:

“Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to qualify for the World Championships in Tokyo. Since I won’t be going to Japan, I decided to take advantage of the great form I’m in by competing in the Belgrade 10K, aiming either to win or to break another national record. I feel great—honestly, better and better as the race gets closer—and I hope that feeling will carry me all the way to the finish,” said Bibić.

The organizers have even more reason to be pleased, as in addition to hosting top elite runners, the Belgrade 10K – Nike Run will also be remembered for its massive turnout.

“We’ll have five thousand runners, which is 20 percent more than last year. This continues the trend of increasing participation in all races organized by the Belgrade Marathon. This will be the 14th consecutive running event where we break the record for the number of participants, and that’s a fact worth highlighting,” said Darko Habuš, director of the Belgrade Marathon, before emphasizing:

“We owe a great deal of gratitude to the running community in Serbia, which shows us trust race after race. This time as well, we’ll strive to organize everything flawlessly, meet the highest possible standards, and provide all participants with an exceptional experience on the course. I especially want to highlight the international nature of this race, as we will have runners from over 50 countries across all five continents. I am confident that, once again, we will prove ourselves as outstanding hosts. Adding to the quality this year are the top elite runners, which means the Belgrade 10K could be among the three fastest 10K races in the world this year, something that particularly excites us,” Habuš concluded.