David Boyce, who takes runcations, competing in the London Marathon in 2024. Courtesy of David Boyce
When some people travel, they collect fridge magnets or shot glasses. Eugen Godun collects marathon medals.
Last March, the 34-year-old software developer earned the coveted Six Star medal for running the Boston, Chicago, New York City, London, Berlin, and Tokyo marathons, known as the original World Marathon Majors. When Godun crossed the finish line in Japan, he burst into tears, overcome by a mixture of pride, happiness, and pure exhaustion.
Godun started running in 2014 and completed his first international marathon in Poland the following year, shaving an hour off his previous time of 4 hours and 6 minutes. Over the past decade, his pursuit of medals and faster finishes has taken him from his home in Kyiv to eight countries across Europe, the US, and Asia.
For amateur runners like Godun, destination races kill several birds with one stone: a trip abroad, a major athletic achievement, and some serious bragging rights. Godun is particularly proud to be one of only 60 Ukrainians recorded as having received a Six Star medal.
For all their rewards, international marathons demand plenty in return: vacation days, family time, and money. In 11 years, Godun said he has spent roughly $40,000 on international marathon trips, or $5,000 a race on average.
Godun sometimes wonders where he’d be financially if he’d saved the money instead. “Maybe if I switched these marathons for saving money, I’d be able to buy my own apartment,” he said.
Even so, he thinks it was worth it. “I like to spend my money on experiences, not on things,” Godun added.
For Godun and thousands of runners like him, the pursuit of international race medals has given rise to what the travel industry now calls “runcations” — trips built entirely around a destination race, blending athletic ambition with tourism and making the finish line just one stop on a larger adventure.
