According to local media, the marathon was the sixth edition of what had become a popular road race on Kish Island. The number of participants — approximately 5,000 — signals that the event had grown significantly over the years.
Organisers apparently made arrangements for separate categories or waves for men and women. Some observers — and defence of the race by supporters — claim that the women’s race began before dawn and was conducted separately from men, with timing and separation intended to respect legal and social norms.
Nevertheless, photographs and videos circulating from the marathon show a number of women running without hijab and wearing clothing that many conservative and judicial authorities judged as “immodest.”
For many participants and supporters, the race was a breath of normalcy — a welcome sporting and recreational event on a tourist-heavy island. Kish, located in a “free zone,” has long occupied a peculiar status in Iran, sometimes perceived as more relaxed about enforcement of certain social norms, particularly to maintain its appeal to tourists.
