My marathons

Oxford Half Marathon

Oxford
Radcliffe Camera
Radcliffe Camera. Photograph by Julian Herzog ( Website ), CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The route starts and finishes on Mansfield Road, passes Oxford's best-known landmarks, climbs to Summertown and loops back through University Parks.

The course in short 3 lines
  • Mansfield Road to Summertown and back through University ParksMansfield Road start and finish, Summertown, University Parks.
  • Five aid stations, with gels at mile 6.5Water at 3.8, 7.7, 10.1 and 11.4 miles; OTE gels at 6.5.
  • A 9:30 start and a 3.5 hour cut-off2026: 9:30 start, seven pens, route cut-off at 13:45.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGeometryMansfield Road to Summertown and back through University ParksMansfield Road start and finish, Summertown, University Parks.

The organiser says the 2026 route was the same as 2025’s. The 2027 race is on Sunday 10 October 2027. The Event Village, with bag drop, toilets and warm-up, is in Oxford University Parks.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsFive aid stations, with gels at mile 6.5Water at 3.8, 7.7, 10.1 and 11.4 miles; OTE gels at 6.5.

Water was served in recyclable cups, with refills at the other four stations and in the Event Village. Mile markers were shown along the route, with smaller kilometre markers every 5 km.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsA 9:30 start and a 3.5 hour cut-off2026: 9:30 start, seven pens, route cut-off at 13:45.

Pens A to C started from 9:30, D and E from 9:45 and F and G from 10:00, and the first finisher was expected at 10:35.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

2 gels for Oxford, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7.3mile 4.6
  2. km 14.7mile 9.1

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.

Get it on Amazon

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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
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.

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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.

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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
21.1 km13.1 mi

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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