Entry through the organiser
Entry details on the organiser’s site →
The organiser, a third party. We take no entries and have no part in the race.
Running Bologna? Do your long runs with the gel you will race on. Get them on Amazon Amazon partner link
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Bologna Marathon
At a glance
- Race day
- The 2027 race
- Distance
- 42.2 km26.2 mi
- Marathon · Half marathon · 5K, from the race name, not from a published programme
- Time limit
- 6 hours
The course
The organiser sends the 2027 marathon through Bologna's UNESCO porticoes and iconic piazzas, with the Expo Village in Piazza Maggiore.
- Porticoes, piazzas, Piazza MaggioreUNESCO porticoes and iconic piazzas; the Expo Village is in Piazza Maggiore.
- FIDAL Bronze, six hoursFIDAL Bronze Category A, World Athletics calendar; 6 hour limit.
- A capped field of 3,600Marathon capped at 3,600; 2026 drew over 12,000 across the events.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseLandmarkPorticoes, piazzas, Piazza MaggioreUNESCO porticoes and iconic piazzas; the Expo Village is in Piazza Maggiore.
The organiser describes the 2027 marathon as a route through the heart of the city, among porticoes that are a UNESCO heritage site, iconic piazzas and views full of history. The event’s three days of celebration are in Piazza Maggiore, where the Expo Village stands. Starts are on Via Irnerio.
Sourced
Whole courseTacticsFIDAL Bronze, six hoursFIDAL Bronze Category A, World Athletics calendar; 6 hour limit.
The regulation lists the Termal Bologna Marathon as FIDAL Bronze Category A and part of the World Athletics Global Calendar. The time limit is 6 hours. The organiser staffs the back of the race and reopens the roads to traffic gradually as the limit approaches; runners still on the course after the end-of-race vehicle passes are out of the race and must follow the highway code.
Kilometre markers stand at the side of the road.
Sourced
Whole courseCrowdA capped field of 3,600Marathon capped at 3,600; 2026 drew over 12,000 across the events.
The organiser limits the 2027 marathon to 3,600 participants, and the 30 km to 1,600. After the 2026 edition, which it says registered over 12,000 participants from 81 countries across the events, it calls Bologna one of the most prestigious running events in Italy and Europe.
Sourced
Race weekend
Before race week 1 key date
-
21 Feb 2027
Marathon registration closes Entry is online through Endu and limited to 3,600 marathon places. The fee is 75 EUR to 10 January 2027 and 85 EUR from 11 January to the close.
Friday 5 March Bib pickup
-
15:303:30 PM–19:007:00 PM
Expo and bib pickup Piazza Maggiore.
Saturday 6 March Last bib day
-
09:009:00 AM–19:007:00 PM
Expo Village Piazza Maggiore. -
10:0010:00 AM–19:007:00 PM
Race office
Bib in hand?A number belt holds it without pins through your race top. Clip it on tonight.
Number belt on AmazonAmazon partner link
Sunday 7 March Race day
-
06:306:30 AM–08:158:15 AM
Race office For the 42 km, 30 km and 21 km. -
07:007:00 AM–15:003:00 PM
Baggage drop For the 42 km, 30 km and 21 km. -
08:008:00 AM–17:005:00 PM
Expo Village Piazza Maggiore. -
Time not published
Overall time limit 6 hours for the marathon. 6:00 limit: 8:31/km for 42.195 km6:00 limit: 13:43/mi for 26.2 mi
Times as published by the organiser, in Bologna time, checked . Confirm on their site before you travel.
The forecast for Sunday
Race morning, on the record
We hold no start time for this race, so the record is read at 09:009:00 AM, local time.
Add to calendar .ics file, times in Bologna time
Entry
Race fuel
Energy gel
5 gels for Bologna, plus 1 spare
Finish
One every 40 minutes, by the clock:
Under about 75 minutes most runners need no gel: water at the aid stations does it.
- km 7mile 4.4
- km 14.1mile 8.7
- km 21.1mile 13.1
- km 28.1mile 17.5
- km 35.2mile 21.8
For your long training runs:
Our pick: SiS BETA Fuel gel, box of 6, strawberry and lime. 40 g of carbohydrate a gel, about twice a usual gel, from two kinds of sugar your body takes up side by side. Enough for race day and two test long runs.
Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.
Get it on Amazon
We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
In Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Salted Caramel, 24-pack, the best seller there.
Outside the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and Ireland, Spain and Portugal, Italy, the rest of the EU and Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Chocolate Outrage, 24-pack on Amazon.com, the best seller there.
Anti-chafe
Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml
An invisible layer before the start keeps seams, straps and shoes from rubbing skin raw.
Put it on before you leave for the start: heels and toes, inner thighs, under a bra or heart-rate strap.
Try it on a long run first, like everything you use on race day.
Get it on Amazon
We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
Number belt
Compressport Race Belt
Holds your bib without safety pins through your top, with loops for up to 8 gels.
Clip the bib on the night before, so it goes on with your shorts in the morning.
Keep the number on the front, where officials and photographers can see it.
Get it on Amazon
We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
Electrolytes
SiS Hydro electrolyte tablets, tube of 20
One tablet in a bottle puts back some of the salt you sweat out.
One tablet in 500 ml of water in the hour before the start.
Only if you have used them in training: nothing new on race day.
Get it on Amazon
We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
Blister plasters
Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6
One in a pocket cushions a blister if one starts.
Put it on clean, dry skin and leave it until it comes off by itself.
Give a couple to whoever comes to cheer, so they are there at the km you need them.
Get it on Amazon
We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
Keep exploring
More races to look at after the Bologna Marathon.
