My marathons

广州马拉松 (Guangzhou Marathon)

07:007:00 AM Guangzhou
Haixinsha
Haixinsha. Photograph by そらみみ, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The 2026 Guangzhou Marathon route follows the Pearl River's two banks, starting at the Tianhe Sports Center and finishing at the Starlight Avenue on Haixinsha.

The course in short 2 lines
  • One river, two banks, from the Tianhe Sports Center to HaixinshaAlong both banks of the river, Tianhe Sports Center to the Haixinsha finish.
  • Four guns from 7:00 to 7:30 and a lottery for 30,000 placesWaves at 7:00, 7:10, 7:20, 7:30; lottery for 30,000 places; 180 yuan.
Course notes 2 short reads on the course
Whole courseFinishOne river, two banks, from the Tianhe Sports Center to HaixinshaAlong both banks of the river, Tianhe Sports Center to the Haixinsha finish.

The Guangzhou Sports Bureau says the route continues to be laid out along the “one river, two banks” line, with the marathon (42.195 km) starting at the Tianhe Sports Center and finishing on the Starlight Avenue on Haixinsha. The race is on Sunday 20 December 2026, with the field enlarged to 30,000.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsFour guns from 7:00 to 7:30 and a lottery for 30,000 placesWaves at 7:00, 7:10, 7:20, 7:30; lottery for 30,000 places; 180 yuan.

The 2026 race had registration from 2 to 11 September. The organiser requires entrants to be 20 in the race year and to show a marathon or two half marathons from the previous 24 months, online results not counting. Loyal runners with ten Guangzhou finishes and elite runners (up to 5,000) get direct entry, and a lottery fills the remaining places. A new prize of 120,000 yuan each for the men and women goes to anyone who breaks the national marathon record.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Guangzhou, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7mile 4.4
  2. km 14.1mile 8.7
  3. km 21.1mile 13.1
  4. km 28.1mile 17.5
  5. km 35.2mile 21.8

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.

Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.

Order by 29 November to test them on two long runs first.

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
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

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
A race number belt
Illustration · drag to turn

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
A tube of electrolyte tablets
Illustration · drag to turn

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
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

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.
distance
42.2 km26.2 mi

Race week

Timetable

Sunday 20 December Race day

  1. 07:007:00 AM

    Marathon start, first gun Start at the Tianhe Sports Center; the finish is at the Starlight Avenue on Haixinsha.

  2. 07:107:10 AM

    Second gun

  3. 07:207:20 AM

    Third gun

  4. 07:307:30 AM

    Fourth gun

Times as published by the organiser, in Guangzhou time, checked .

Add to calendar .ics file, times in Guangzhou time

Trip

Getting a place

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.

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