Elite runners were invited the following year, with world record holder Fernando Mamede and Dutch record holder Carla Beurskens taking the men's and women's titles.

Ingrid Kristiansen set the current women's record in 1987 with her run of 50:31 minutes.

From the 1990s onwards, the elite race has been dominated by East African (particularly Kenyan) runners.

Leonard Patrick Komon is the current men's course record holder with his time of 44:27 minutes in 2011 (the second fastest ever for the distance).

The Dam tot Damloop 10-miler attracts high level of participation: almost 10,000 runners competed in 1990, rising to almost 20,000 in 1999 and almost 40,000 in 2008.