Thousands of marathon runners winding their way through Downtown and the Northside on Saturday under a sunny sky included Niklas Kroehn.

Kroehn, 37, came from his home in Villach,, Austria, for his first visit to the Midwest to participate in Saturday’s second annual Indianapolis Monumental Marathon.

“The course was great, but it was very windy,” said Kroehn, who placed seventh in the marathon with a time of 2:37.50.9.

The course wound from the Statehouse, through Downtown and the Near Northside to the Northside areas of Broad Ripple, Butler University and the Museum of Art.

The marathon – 26.2 miles was won by Mathew Chesang, 28, Eau Claire, Wis., with a time of 2:21:00.3, on the unseasonably warm November day.

Kroehn said he frequently travels internationally to participate in marathons, and made the Indianapolis a destination along with vacationing in Florida and visiting friends in New York City.

“I like to combine vacations with running marathons,” he said.

Aaron Moody, 31, Indianapolis, the marathon’s elite athlete coordinate, said at least 6,000 people participated in Saturday’s marathon and half-marathon. Last year, there were at least 3,400 participants from 43 states and six nations.