Medals are awarded at the GAC Honda 2019 Hangzhou Marathon. [Photo/IC]

The GAC Honda 2020 Hangzhou Marathon will begin at 7:30 am this Sunday.

The number of participants this year is capped at 10,000 in view of risks posed by COVID-19. The full marathon will have 7,000 participants, while the half marathon will have 3,000.

All runners will start at Wulin Square on Yan'an Road, run along Huanchenxi Road and Beishan Road, cross half of the West Lake scenic area, and finish at the Olympic Sports Center. The half marathon will finish on Xinye Road in Jianggan district.

The International Association of Athletics Federations, or IAAF, awarded Gold Label status to the Hangzhou Marathon in 2019 -- recognizing the annual event as being among the world's leading road races.

The Hangzhou Marathon is the 12th marathon in China to join the world's most prestigious marathon league.

The marathon, initiated in 1987 in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, is the second oldest marathon in China. It has been awarded the Gold Label Road Race by the Chinese Athletic Association every year since 2014.