North Korea has banned foreigners from participating in the 2015 Pyongyang Marathon, citing concerns over Ebola, a company that facilitates foreign travel to the isolated country said Monday.
“We are sorry to announce that our North Korean partners contacted us this morning with news that the 2015 Pyongyang Marathon has — as of today — been closed to amateur and professional foreign runners,” Koryo Tours said in a statement on its website.
BREAKING: Disappointed to confirm no foreign runners will be allowed to participate in 2015 Pyongyang Marathon - amateur or professional.
The marathon, scheduled this year for April 12, typically draws a large foreign contingent. Koryo Tours alone had planned to take 500 people to the country for the event, according to Reuters. The company said it planned for March tours to proceed as previously scheduled.
North Korean authorities also reportedly cancelled the annual Mass Games—a gymnastics festival that typically drew a foreign crowd—without providing an explanation.
The North Korean government offered no apparent explanation for its Ebola concerns. The disease has killed thousands of people around the world, but none of the deaths have been in Asia. The country’s government has claimed through state television that Ebola was created by the U.S. government.
See Inside North Korea's Mangyongdae Marathon
Runners take off from the starting line inside Kim Il Sung Stadium at the beginning of the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon in Pyongyang, North Korea on April 13, 2014. David Guttenfelder—APNorth Korean spectators watch from the roadside in central Pyongyang as runners pass by during the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon in Pyongyang, April 13, 2014. David Guttenfelder—APThe lead pack of runners are cheered on by North Korean spectators on the roadside in central Pyongyang during the running of the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon in Pyongyang on April 13, 2014. David Guttenfelder—APRunners pass under a pedestrian bridge in central Pyongyang during the running of the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon in Pyongyang, on April 13, 2014. David Guttenfelder—APNorth Korean spectators watch and cheer from the stands of Kim Il Sung Stadium as runners arrive at the finish of the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon in Pyongyang on April 13, 2014. David Guttenfelder—APNorth Korean twin sisters Kim Hye Gyong (135) and Kim Hye Song (136) take a victory lap together inside Kim Il Sung Stadium after placing first and second respectively in the the women's Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon in Pyongyang, on April 13, 2014. David Guttenfelder—APNorth Korean race officials stand at the finish line inside Kim Il Sung Stadium during the running of the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon in Pyongyang on April 13, 2014. David Guttenfelder—APTourists who competed in the shorter distance segments of the marathon, rest at the end of the race on April 13, 2014. From left are Harriet Harrper-Jones, England, and Allie Wu, Taiwan. The sign behind them reads "Long Live the Shining Revolutionary Tradition of Our Party." David Guttenfelder—AP
