My marathons

Paris Half Marathon

Paris
Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower. Photograph by Jorge Royan, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The Paris Half Marathon takes a different route each year, through different streets and neighbourhoods.

The course in short 3 lines
  • A different course every yearA new course every year, so an earlier edition's route tells you little.
  • Twenty arrondissements over four editionsA rolling plan to cover the whole city, from riverbanks to cobbled neighbourhood streets.
  • First run in 1993, 110,000 registered for 2027Entry for 2027 was run as a lottery, with results emailed from 1 October 2026.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGeometryA different course every yearA new course every year, so an earlier edition's route tells you little.

The organiser’s stated aim is a new course every year, through different streets, different neighbourhoods and different terrain. Its page on the 2027 edition, read on 11 October 2026, had not yet published that year’s route. The distance is 21.0975 km and the race day is Sunday 7 March 2027.

Sourced

Whole courseLandmarkTwenty arrondissements over four editionsA rolling plan to cover the whole city, from riverbanks to cobbled neighbourhood streets.

Each edition is meant to show a different part of the city: the riverbanks, wide avenues, neighbourhood streets, squares, cobblestones, climbs and long straights, in the organiser’s words. Over four editions the race aims to take in every one of the 20 arrondissements, which is why the route is rebuilt each year instead of repeated.

Sourced

Whole courseCrowdFirst run in 1993, 110,000 registered for 2027Entry for 2027 was run as a lottery, with results emailed from 1 October 2026.

The Semi de Paris first ran in 1993. For the 2027 edition the organiser’s page reads “110 000 registered” and says the lottery results go out by email from 1 October 2026. The organiser lists other ways to the start line: charity entries, corporate entries and an official resale platform.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

2 gels for Paris, 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.

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
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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