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H.C. Andersen Marathon
The H.C. Andersen Marathon is a course of 42.2 km with 72.6 m of climbing. Its lowest point is 2 m and its highest 17 m above sea level. Next race: Sunday 26 September 2027, starting at 10:00.
At a glance
- Race day
- The 2027 race
- Start
- 10:0010:00 AM
- Distance
- 42.2 km26.2 mi
- Marathon · Half marathon · 10K
- Total climb
- 72.6 m238 ft
- Highest point 15 m49 ft above lowest
The course
Pick a place, or drag along the profileThe 2026 HCA course gains 73 m over the marathon and stays between about 2 and 17 m above sea level, where the organiser puts the difference between its highest and lowest point at 21 m.
StartFinish
© OpenStreetMap contributors
- Photo: Bo Jessen, CC0
km 9.7mile 6
Flakhaven
The organiser's route list takes the marathon across Flakhaven twice, and its programme puts the first runners' finish look-out there.
Photo: Bo Jessen, CC0
km 12.8mile 8
Munke Mose
The organiser's route list runs through Munke Mose, the park by the Odense river.
km 25.2mile 15.7
Odins Bro
The organiser's route list for the marathon's second lap crosses Odins Bro.
km 41.6mile 25.9
Odense Atletikstadion
The organiser's route list ends 'Mål på Atletikstadion', the finish in Odense Athletics Stadium.
Height drawn many times taller than life · GEDTM30
Cut-off 13:001:00 PM, km 20.5mile 12.7
0 10 20 30 40 km
0 10 20 26.2 mi
Dashed: bridge
Your 5 gels, at the orange marksFor a 4:00 finish, one every 40 minutes
- km 7mile 4.4
- km 14.1mile 8.7
- km 21.1mile 13.1
- km 28.1mile 17.5
- km 35.2mile 21.8
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- A flat course, 73 m of climbing between 2 and 17 m73 m of climbing, 2 to 17 m above sea level; the organiser says 21 m high to low.
- Two laps through Odense, finishing in the Athletics StadiumTwo laps past Flakhaven and Munke Mose, finishing in the Athletics Stadium.
- A 10:00 joint start and a 13:00 cut-off at 20.5 km26 September 2027, 10:00 joint start, 13:00 cut-off at 20.5 km.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGradientA flat course, 73 m of climbing between 2 and 17 m73 m of climbing, 2 to 17 m above sea level; the organiser says 21 m high to low.
The organiser’s route page states that the difference between the highest and lowest point is 21 m, and the homepage calls the route fast: in 2019 the race was named the world’s fastest marathon by average finishing time, according to the organiser. The ground itself ranges over 15 m, from 2 m near the river to 17 m near the start, and the 2026 route climbs 73 m in all. The two figures are different measurements.
Measured
Whole courseLandmarkTwo laps through Odense, finishing in the Athletics StadiumTwo laps past Flakhaven and Munke Mose, finishing in the Athletics Stadium.
The organiser lists the route street by street. It starts near Stadionvej, goes through the centre across Flakhaven, through Munke Mose and by the Odense river, and the marathon runs the loop twice, with Odins Bro on the second-lap description. The marathon and the half marathon split on Møllemarksvej before the half marathon runners enter the Athletics Stadium; the finish is in the stadium. The organiser says the route is car-free from 10:00 to 16:00 and is measured and approved by AIMS. The route described is the 2026 one.
Sourced
Whole courseConditionsA 10:00 joint start and a 13:00 cut-off at 20.5 km26 September 2027, 10:00 joint start, 13:00 cut-off at 20.5 km.
The organiser’s homepage describes the 27th edition on Sunday 26 September 2027, with a joint start for the marathon and the half marathon from Stadionvej at 10:00. The route is traffic-free from 10:00 to 16:00, and traffic is let back on along a fixed schedule: at about 13:30 at km 24, for example. A marathon runner who has not passed 20.5 km by 13:00 is told to continue to the finish and not start the second lap. The sports expo and bib collection is open on Friday 24 September 14:00 to 18:00, Saturday 10:00 to 16:30 and Sunday 08:00 to 16:00.
Sourced
Race weekend
Friday 24 September 2 days before
-
14:002:00 PM
Sports expo and bib collection Odense Idrætspark, Israels Plads 3. Open 14:00 to 18:00. Bibs and ordered T-shirts are collected at the expo on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
Saturday 25 September The day before
-
10:0010:00 AM
Sports expo and bib collection Odense Idrætspark, Israels Plads 3. Open 10:00 to 16:30. Bibs and ordered T-shirts are collected at the expo on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
Sunday 26 September Race day
-
08:008:00 AM
Sports expo and bib collection Odense Idrætspark, Israels Plads 3. Open 08:00 to 16:00. -
16:004:00 PM
Traffic-free route closes The route is free of traffic from 10:00 to 16:00; traffic is let back on along the route according to a fixed schedule, for example at km 24 at about 13:30.
Cut-offs and other races (2)
-
10:0010:00 AM
Marathon and half marathon start Stadionvej. Joint start for the marathon and the half marathon from Stadionvej at 10:00. -
13:001:00 PM
Half-way cut-off at 20.5 km Marathon runners who have not passed 20.5 km by 13:00 are directed to the finish and not onto the second lap.
Times as published by the organiser, in Odense 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 Odense time
Entry
Race fuel
Energy gel
5 gels for Odense, plus 1 spare
Finish
One every 40 minutes, the orange marks on the profile. Odense stays within 15 m49 ft of height, so they go 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 H.C. Andersen Marathon.
