Brazilian runner Vanderlei de Lima, who won bronze in the Athens Olympic men's marathon after being attacked by a spectator while leading the race, will run in the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon in March, organizers said Monday.
The organizing committee for the March 6 event in Shiga Prefecture has received a formal application from De Lima, who had voiced his intention to choose the annual race as his first marathon since running in Athens last August.
In the Olympic race, De Lima was pushed off the road and into the crowd with about 6 km left by former Irish priest Cornelius Horan. He was clearly affected by the incident and settled for a third-place finish in a race won by Italian Stefano Baldini.