Entry through the organiser
Entry details on the organiser’s site →
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Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon
At a glance
- Race day
- The 2027 race
- Start
- 07:307:30 AM
- Distance
- 42.2 km26.2 mi
- Marathon · Half marathon · 5K
- Time limit
- 7 hours
- Finish closes 14:302:30 PM
The course
The 2026 course started on the Clinch Avenue Bridge, ran west along Neyland Drive and Kingston Pike, took the Third Creek Greenway through Tyson Park, and sent the marathon on a loop north of downtown while the half marathon finished at World's Fair Park.
- Out along the river to Neyland Drive, then through Tyson Park and north of downtownThe half marathon turns off at 11th Street; the marathon continues north of downtown.
- A Boston qualifier with 24 live acts on the courseLive music across the course, from the start to the finish at World's Fair Park.
- A 7:30 start and a 2:30 pm course closingSeven hours on the course, with the half and relay starting together at 7:30.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
km 0 to 42.2GeometryOut along the river to Neyland Drive, then through Tyson Park and north of downtownThe half marathon turns off at 11th Street; the marathon continues north of downtown.
The organiser’s 2026 turn-by-turn starts on the Clinch Avenue Bridge near the Convention Center, heads west on Clinch Avenue and 16th Street onto Volunteer Boulevard, and turns onto Neyland Drive to a turnaround cone. It then runs Kingston Pike, Cherokee Boulevard and Blows Ferry Road, loops back on Kingston Pike and Forest Park Boulevard, and joins the Third Creek Greenway through Tyson Park to Cumberland Avenue. At 11th Street and World’s Fair Park Drive the half marathon turns off to its finish at the World’s Fair Exhibition Hall; the marathon turns left and covers the streets north of downtown, around Central Street, Deery Street and Fifth Avenue.
Sourced
km 0 to 42.2CrowdA Boston qualifier with 24 live acts on the courseLive music across the course, from the start to the finish at World's Fair Park.
The marathon is listed as a Boston Marathon qualifier on a USATF-certified course. The organiser says the neighbourhoods along the route plan to cheer, that 24 live musical acts are spread over the course and that the Party Boys DJ Show plays at the start, the finish and several points between. Runners get English Mountain Water, sports drink and GU on the course, and the Pilot Post-Race Party serves Petro’s Chili and Chips.
Sourced
km 0 to 42.2TacticsA 7:30 start and a 2:30 pm course closingSeven hours on the course, with the half and relay starting together at 7:30.
The marathon, half marathon and 4-person relay all start at 7:30 am on Sunday, with wheelchair and handcycle participants going off at 7:27. The marathon course closes at 2:30 pm, seven hours after the start, and the finish line festival at World’s Fair Park runs until 3:00 pm. Marathon runners have to be 18 or older, and packet pickup is at the Health & Fitness Expo on Saturday.
Sourced
Race weekend
Saturday 10 April Expo
-
09:009:00 AM–20:008:00 PM
Health & Fitness Expo World's Fair Exhibition Hall. Packet pickup is at the expo, Saturday only. 935 World's Fair Park Drive.
Other races and side events (4)
-
08:008:00 AM
RunKNOX Shakeout Run World's Fair Exhibition Hall -
17:305:30 PM
Covenant Health Kids Run World's Fair Park -
19:007:00 PM
Covenant Health 5K World's Fair Park -
20:308:30 PM
5K awards ceremony World's Fair Park
Sunday 11 April Race day
-
07:307:30 AM
Marathon start The half marathon and the 4-person relay start at the same time. -
14:302:30 PM
Marathon course closes 7:00 limit: 9:57/km for 42.195 km7:00 limit: 16:01/mi for 26.2 mi -
15:003:00 PM
Finish line festival closes World's Fair Park
Other races (3)
-
07:277:27 AM
Wheelchair and handcycle start -
11:0011:00 AM
Half marathon awards World's Fair Park. Main stage. -
13:001:00 PM
Relay and marathon awards World's Fair Park. Main stage.
Times as published by the organiser, in Knoxville time, checked . Confirm on their site before you travel.
The forecast for Sunday
Race morning, on the record
Add to calendar .ics file, times in Knoxville time
Entry
Race fuel
Energy gel
5 gels for Knoxville, 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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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 Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon.
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