Myanmar hosts first marathon in decades in Yangon

Hundreds of runners streamed through Yangon yesterday for Myanmar's first international marathon in decades, in another sign of the dramatic changes sweeping the former junta-ruled country.

Gathering before dawn in the shadow of the iconic Shwedagon Pagoda, runners flashed victory signs as they pounded the streets of the former colonial capital, the scene of several bloody military crackdowns in the past.

Under a clear blue sky, they snaked past landmarks such as Yangon University - a symbol of the junta-era democratic struggle - and Inya Lake, overlooked by the mansion where Aung San Suu Kyi was locked up for years.

"I'm very excited," 25-year-old Saw Kyaw Soe Oo from eastern Karen State said, before the runners set off through the streets of Yangon, cheered on by supporters along the route.

"It was impossible to hold such an event in the past era. It wouldn't have been so easy to let many foreigners into the country," he said.

More than 1,000 participants were registered to take part in the event, which also included short-distance fun runs.

Kenyan runner Gitau Kariuki, 25, was first past the finishing line in the marathon category after two hours, 19 minutes and 10 seconds.