The Marathon on the Neretva () is an annual amateur traditional boats rowing competition held on the Neretva river in southern Croatia. Competitors race in traditional Neretvian boats known as , wooden boats that historically served as a means of transportation and trade in the Neretva Valley.
The race is organized by the Neretva Boatmen Association () and is traditionally held on the second Saturday in August. The competition is held under the patronage of the President of Croatia.
History
The Marathon was established in 1998 as a competition intended to preserve and promote the traditional Neretva boat, Neretva lađa and the rowing heritage of the Neretva Valley. The first race was held in September rather than August, but subsequent editions became an annual August event.
The first Maraton was held on 13 September 1998, marking the seventh anniversary of "", a Croatian War of Independence military operation conducted in the Neretva area.
The competition initially had a local character. In its early years, participation was primarily restricted to people originating from the Neretva Valley and their descendants. In 2005, the rules were changed to allow anyone to compete, which contributed to the expansion of the competition beyond the Neretva region.
The race subsequently attracted crews from other parts of Croatia, as well as competitors from abroad.
Race
The Marathon is one of the largest traditional-boat sporting events in Croatia. The race normally features around 30–40 crews, with each crew consisting of 12 to 18 competitors. Several tens of thousands of spectators follow the race along the Neretva River, from the riverbanks and from spectator boats.
The race starts beneath the Bridge in Metković and follows the Neretva downstream through Kula Norinska, Krvavac, Opuzen and Komin, and then further through the downstream of the Neretva river branch, the Crna rika river from Banja through Šarić Struga, Rogotin, Čeveljuša and Stablina, before finishing in Ploče. The course is approximately 22.5 kilometres long.
The starting positions are determined by a separate sprint competition "Kup Slobodne Dalmacije" held in Opuzen on Wednesday, four days before the marathon. Crews compete over a 300-metre course with one turn, using the same boat, oars and steer. The fastest crew is given the first choice of starting position in the marathon.
The and crews
The is a traditional wooden boat characteristic of the Neretva Valley. For the purposes of the competition, boats must conform to dimensions and construction requirements specified by the competition rules. The hull must be made of wood, and the oars must have a traditional design. The steering oar, known as the , must be at least 3.8 metres long. Each boat also carries a 3.5-metre mast with the crew's flag, sponsor's flag, and race number.
To prevent competitors from modifying boats to gain an unfair advantage, the Neretva Boatmen Association introduced a fleet of standardized boats. The association owns 33 standardized boats, which are used exclusively for the marathon. No modifications are permitted.
A crew consists of ten rowers, a drummer and a steerer (). During the race, up to six rowers may be replaced at the designated changeover point in Opuzen. A crew therefore consists of between 12 and 18 competitors. The drummer can also replace a rower during the race.
Since 2005, participation has been open to competitors regardless of their place of birth or origin. Crews from the Neretva region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, including Čapljina, Čeljevo and Gabela, have participated, as have crews from the Croatian diaspora in Australia, Italy and Serbia. A crew from Riga, Latvia, competed in 2014 and 2015.
The Domagojevi gusari () crew from Vid owns the oldest surviving Neretvian used in the competition, built in 1895. In 2000, the first and only ever mixed-gender crew Žabe i komari () from Metković competed in a Neretvian built in 1903, which achieved great success by simply reaching the finish line in Ploče, and interestingly enough, they still hold the record for the slowest marathon rowed - 4 hours and 2 minutes. After that, several female-only crews also participated in the Marathon, and since 2014, a separate competition for women has been established, which is held every year on the Thursday before the men's marathon, on a half-shorter course from Metković to Opuzen.
Results
Seasone Date Winner's timeGold Silver Bronze Number of crews 1 13 September 1998 2h 20' Rogotin Gusari (Komin) Banja Sagena 18 2 7 August 1999 — Rogotin Gusari (Komin) Ništa naglo (Komin) 25 3 13 August 2000 2h 12' Komin Rogotin Gusari (Komin) 26 4 11 August 2001 2h 15' Komin Donjani donji (Slivno) Rogotin 31 5 9 August 2002 2h 06' Donjani donji (Slivno) Komin Čeveljuša 33 6 9 August 2003 2h 18' 07"Komin & Rogotin (finished together) Donjani donji (Slivno) 31 7 14 August 2004 2h 15' 51" Donjani donji (Slivno) Baćina Rogotin 33 8 13 August 2005 2h 09' 02" Rogotin Domagojevi gusari (Vid) Komin 40 9 12 August 2006 2h 06' 50" Rogotin PMF Zagreb Domagojevi gusari (Vid) 35 10 11 August 2007 2h 09' 13" Rogotin Komin Donjani donji (Slivno) 33 11 9 August 2008 — Staševica Baćina Rogotin 33 12 8 August 2009 2h 14' 48" Gusari (Komin) Donjani Donji (Slivno) Marko Markota (Rogotin) 40 13 14 August 2010 2h 13' 20" Gusari (Komin) Stablina Marko Markota (Rogotin)& Baćina 35 14 13 August 2011 2h 16' 44" Gusari (Komin) Baćina Opuzen 35 15 11 August 2012 2h 21' 18" Gusari (Komin) Baćina Žrnovski galijoti 37 16 10 August 2013 2h 17' 05" Gusari (Komin) Crni Put (Metković) Žrnovski galijoti 41 17 9 August 2014 2h 09' 09" Crni put (Metković) Stablina & Gusari (Komin) (finished together) 37 18 8 August 2015 2h 14' 14" Stablina Gusari (Komin) Crni put (Metković) 401913 August 20162h 20' 32"Argo (Bjelovar)Stablina & Gusari (Komin) (finished together)342012 August 20172h 11' 02"Gusari (Komin)Argo (Bjelovar)Crni put (Metković) & Stablina (finished together)302111 August 20182h 13' 40"StablinaArgo (Bjelovar)Gusari (Komin)262210 August 20192h 11' 16"Gusari (Komin)StablinaCrni put (Metković)28238 August 2020 2h 04' 32"Zagreb & Stablina Sveti Ilija (Metković)352414 August 20212h 11' 47"StablinaZagrebCrni put (Metković)332513 August 20222h 08' 28"ZagrebStablinaCrni put (Metković)302612 August 20232h 08' 21"ZagrebOpćina SlivnoGusari (Komin)292710 August 20242h 15' 09"ZagrebGusari (Komin)Općina Slivno31289 August 20252h 11' 28,28" ZagrebGusari (Komin)Stablina32 Competition results are available on the Association's website.
Medal table
Crew TownGold Silver Bronze Total 1 Gusari Komin77317 2 Rogotin Rogotin61310 3ZagrebZagreb516 4 StablinaStablina45211 5 KominKomin3216 6 Donjani donji Slivno2226 7ArgoBjelovar123 8 Crni put Metković1157 9 Staševica Staševica1 1 10 BaćinaBaćina 415 11 Domagojevi gusariVid 112Općina SlivnoSlivno112 13 PMF Zagreb Zagreb 1 1 14 Marko MarkotaRogotin 22 Žrnovski galijoti Žrnovo 22 16 Banja Sagena Banja 11 Čeveljuša Čeveljuša 11 Ništa naglo Komin 11 Opuzen Opuzen 11Sveti IlijaMetković11
Gusari of Komin are the most successful crew in the history of the competition, with seven victories. They won five consecutive editions between 2009 and 2013 and have also finished second seven times and third three times. The crew has won the Domagoj Shield permanently.
Rogotin is the second-most successful crew, with six victories. The crew has also recorded one second-place and three third-place finishes.
Zagreb won three consecutive editions from 2022 to 2024, earning permanent possession of the Domagoj Shield. Its five victories rank it third in the overall number of wins.
Argo Bjelovar became the first winning crew from outside the Neretva Valley when they won the 2016 edition. Its unexpected victory was later the subject of the documentary film "Golden Fleece, Argonauts of the Pond" ().
Women's competition
A separate women's race, the Maraton lađarica, was introduced on 7 August 2014 as part of the 17th Maraton lađa. The women's race covers approximately 10 kilometres.
From 2014 through 2017, the women's race was rowed upstream from Opuzen to Metković, reflecting the historical practice of women in the Neretva Valley pulling boats upstream with ropes. Because of the physical demands and increased risk of injury, the direction was reversed in 2018. Since then, the women's race has started beneath the Lučki Bridge in Metković and finished near the Old Bridge in Opuzen.
The women's competition is also international in character. The Sisak crew became the dominant team in the event in the early 2020s, winning five consecutive editions from 2022 through 2026.
Including the 2026 race, the Sisak crew has the most medals. After one silver and one bronze, they currently have an unbroken streak of 5 wins in a row.
International and other rowing activities The Marathon has contributed to the international promotion of Neretvian rowing.
In July 2008, a Neretva crew participated in the Festival of the Sea and Sailors in Brest, France. On 26 June 2009, a representative Neretva crew crossed the English Channel between the British and French coasts in 3 hours and 40 minutes.
On 19 June 2010, a Neretva crew rowed across the Adriatic Sea from Metković to Termoli, Italy, a distance of approximately 140 nautical miles, rowing continuously for approximately 35 hours.
In June 2013, a Neretva crew became the first international crew to participate in the Palio del Mediterraneo, a traditional-boat race held in Taranto, Italy.
In May 2025, to promote the Neretvian Marathon and its heritage and to mark the 33rd anniversary of the Republic of Croatia's entry into the UN, a mixed crew from Neretva and Bjelovar rowed around Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty on a 51-kilometer route.
Legacy and influence
The success of the Maraton lađa contributed to the preservation and revitalization of the traditional Neretvian and inspired the establishment of other traditional-boat competitions in Croatia.
Among the events associated with the Neretva rowing tradition are the St. Elijah Cup in Metković, the Župa Bagalović Rowing Cup, the Duke Domagoj Cup in Vid, the Small Trupa Race and the international Neretva Boat Regatta.
The popularity of the Marathon also encouraged the organization and revival of traditional rowing competitions involving other types of historic boats along the Croatian coast, including the Lošinj Pasara Rowing Regatta and women's rowing regattas in Betina and Krapanj.
Croatian Post issued a €1.80 commemorative stamp on 8 July 2024 depicting Neretva boatmen during the Marathon, together with a first-day cover.
The Croatian National Bank issued gold and silver numismatic coins entitled Neretvanska lađa in 2026 as part of its “Old Croatian Ships” series; their designs depict the and two crews rowing, respectively, the latter evoking scenes from the Marathon.
References
External links
Official English-language website Competition results