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Pittsburgh Marathon

Start 07:007:00 AM Pittsburgh

The Pittsburgh Marathon is a hilly course of 42.2 km (26.2 miles) with 175.8 m (577 ft) of climbing. Its lowest point is 222 m (728 ft) and its highest 296 m (971 ft) above sea level. Next race: Sunday 2 May 2027, starting at 7:00 AM.

Point State Park
Point State Park. Photograph by John, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons . Course line © OpenStreetMap contributors

At a glance

Race day
The 2027 race
Start
07:007:00 AM
Distance
42.2 km26.2 mi
Marathon · Half marathon · 5K · Kids' race · Relay · Walk
Total climb
175.8 m577 ft
Highest point 74 m243 ft above lowest
Time limit
7 hours

The course

Pick a place, or drag along the profile

The first 18 km stay between 222 and 235 m, then the road climbs about 52 m, from 229 m at km 17.8 to 280 m at km 20.2.

StartFinish

© OpenStreetMap contributors

  1. Photo: takomabibelot, CC BY 2.0
  2. Photo: Cbaile19, CC0
  3. Photo: Cbaile19, CC0

km 4.7mile 2.9

David McCullough Bridge

The organiser's 2026 course information requires every participant at the 16th Street Bridge by 8:40 a.m.

Photo: takomabibelot, CC BY 2.0

Height drawn many times taller than life · GEDTM30

Course elevation profile, 8× vertical exaggeration Elevation along the course from km 0 to km 42. The trace runs between 222 and 296 metres, a range of 74 metres, drawn at 8 times vertical exaggeration so the shape is legible. Smoothed over 1 km before this profile was derived. An unsmoothed urban surface carries the buildings and would assert a climb that is not there. The dashed stretches are bridge decks: David McCullough Bridge, km 4.3 to 4.9; East Ohio Street, km 5.4 to 5.5; West End Bridge, km 10.4 to 11.1; Birmingham Bridge, km 18.1 to 18.9. A bare-earth model reads the ground or the water beneath a bridge, not the deck the runner is on, so those runs are interpolated between the ground either side rather than measured, and they under-report the real climb across a span.
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

  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

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  • Flat for 18 km, then one 52 m climbEighteen level kilometres, then one steady climb straight after the Birmingham Bridge.
  • A high plateau, then a 62 m dropSixteen kilometres up high, then a long fall before the last three kilometres.
  • Three bridges the organiser timesThe 16th Street, West End and Birmingham bridges, at about km 4.3, 10.4 and 18.1.
Course notes 4 short reads on the course
km 0 to 21GradientFlat for 18 km, then one 52 m climbEighteen level kilometres, then one steady climb straight after the Birmingham Bridge.

From the start on Liberty Avenue to km 18 the road never leaves a band between 222 m (the low point, at km 9.2) and 235 m, a spread of 13 m over eighteen kilometres.

The climb comes right after the Birmingham Bridge, which the course crosses between km 18.1 and km 18.9. From 229 m at km 17.8 the road rises to 280 m at km 20.2, about 52 m in 2.4 km, and then holds that height. These are the organiser’s 2026 course maps.

Measured

km 21 to 39GradientA high plateau, then a 62 m dropSixteen kilometres up high, then a long fall before the last three kilometres.

Once it is up, the course stays up: between km 20 and km 36.5 the road sits between 274 and 296 m, a band of 22 m across sixteen kilometres, and the highest point of the whole course is at km 25.9.

The descent starts at km 36.3 and is the steepest sustained stretch of the course: 287 m down to 225 m by km 38.6, about 62 m in 2.3 km. After the fall the road is level at about 225 m to km 40.

Measured

km 4.3 to 18.9LandmarkThree bridges the organiser timesThe 16th Street, West End and Birmingham bridges, at about km 4.3, 10.4 and 18.1.

The organiser’s course information page, headed 2026, says city streets and police support are contracted for specific times: “All participants must be to the 16th Street Bridge by 8:40 a.m.”, the West End Bridge by 9:40 a.m. and the Birmingham Bridge by 10:40 a.m. Along the course the three bridges fall at about km 4.3, km 10.4 and km 18.1.

Those times are the 2026 ones; the organiser’s 2027 marathon page gives an overall pace of 16:00 minutes per mile instead.

Sourced

km 0 to 42.2TacticsSixteen minutes a mile keeps the roads openBehind 16:00 a mile you may be swept; after that there is no support and the course is unmarked.

The organiser’s 2027 marathon page puts the start at 7:00 on Sunday 2 May on Liberty Avenue near 10th Street and the finish on Boulevard of the Allies near Point State Park. The page says that runners who cannot keep the permitted pace “may be asked to board a sweep vehicle”, and anyone who carries on after the roads have reopened has no medical support, fluid stations or course marshals at intersections, and the course is no longer marked. The page also states that the Pittsburgh Marathon is a Boston qualifier.

Sourced

Race weekend

Friday 30 April Expo

  1. 11:0011:00 AM–20:008:00 PM

    Race expo David L. Lawrence Convention Center, 1000 Fort Duquesne Blvd. Every runner collects their bib here. VIP runners only: 10:00 to 11:00.

Saturday 1 May Expo

  1. 07:307:30 AM

    5K start West General Robinson Street. The 5K finishes on Boulevard of the Allies near Point State Park.

  2. 09:009:00 AM–17:005:00 PM

    Race expo David L. Lawrence Convention Center, 1000 Fort Duquesne Blvd. Every runner collects their bib here; the Sunday events also have a will-call pickup on Saturday night or Sunday morning.

Sunday 2 May Race day

  1. 07:007:00 AM

    Marathon start Liberty Avenue near 10th Street. The marathon and the half marathon start together. The marathon finishes on Boulevard of the Allies near Point State Park.

  2. Time not published

    Marathon pace requirement Runners who cannot hold the pace may be asked to board a sweep vehicle; anyone who carries on after the roads reopen has no medical support, fluid stations or course marshals, and the course is no longer marked. 16:00 a mile is 9:56/km, 6:59:30 for 42.195 km16:00 a mile, 6:59:30 for 26.2 mi
Other races (2)

  1. 07:007:00 AM

    Half marathon start Liberty Avenue near 10th Street

  2. 09:009:00 AM

    BACK Half Marathon start Ellsworth Avenue between Morewood Avenue and Devonshire Street. Shuttles to this start leave the arena on Fifth Avenue at 8:00.

Times as published by the organiser, in Pittsburgh time, checked . Confirm on their site before you travel.

Add to calendar .ics file, times in Pittsburgh time

Entry

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.

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Pittsburgh, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, the orange marks on the profile, 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.

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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
A small balm stick
Illustration · drag to turn

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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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.

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We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Blister plasters
A pack of blister plasters
Illustration · drag to turn

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.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Questions about the Pittsburgh Marathon

Is the Pittsburgh Marathon course flat?
No, it is a hilly course: 175.8 m (577 ft) of climbing over 42.2 km (26.2 miles). The highest point is 74 m (243 ft) above the lowest. It finishes 17 m (56 ft) higher than it starts.
When is the Pittsburgh Marathon 2027?
Sunday 2 May 2027. The start is at 7:00 AM.
What is the time limit at the Pittsburgh Marathon?
Runners have 7 hours to finish.
Where does the Pittsburgh Marathon start?
Start: Liberty Avenue near 10th Street.
Runner talk Questions, tips and race reports from other runners about the course and the city.

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