The Sydney Marathon is a

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

held annually in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Australia each September. The event was first held on the 30th of April 2000 and called The Host City Marathon as a test event for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, and has continued every year since, as a legacy of the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. The marathon is categorized as a Platinum Label Road Race by

World Athletics World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

. The Sydney Marathon is part of the Sydney Running Festival, which also includes a

half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcu ...

, a 10K run, and a race.

History

The Sydney Marathon started in April 2000, following the same course as the marathon during the 2000 Summer Olympics. The women's race in 2001 was won by

Krishna Stanton Krishna Lee Stanton ( née Wood; born 18 May 1966) is an Australian former distance runner. She finished fourth in the 3000 metres at the 1987 IAAF World Indoor Championships and went on to win the silver medal in the marathon The mara ...

, who had never run a marathon before, and was doing the event as a result of a challenge from a friend. In 2014 the marathon was awarded a Silver Label Road Race by the

International Association of Athletics Federations World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

(IAAF), then in December 2014 the race was awarded a Gold Label Road Race in time for the 2015 race and it is now a Platinum Label Road Race. The 2020 in-person edition of the race was cancelled due to the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

, with all entries automatically transferred to 2021, and all registrants given the option of also running the race virtually for free. Elkanah Kibet won the 2022 race in 2:07:02, a new course record, and the fastest marathon time run on Australian soil. In July 2022, organisers of the race announced that they were applying to be added to the list of

World Marathon Majors The World Marathon Majors (WMM) (known for sponsorship reasons as the Abbott World Marathon Majors) is a championship-style competition for marathon runners that started in 2006. A points-based competition founded on six major marathon races reco ...

Course

The marathon course initially followed the same course that was used in the 2000 Summer Olympics. In 2010 the marathon course was changed to flatten it out which, according to the organisers, makes it "a faster, more scenic and spectator friendly course." The marathon runs on a point-to-point course that begins in Bradfield Park,

Milsons Point Milsons Point is a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb is located 3 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of North Sydney Council. Mil ...

, crosses over the

Sydney Harbour Bridge The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, spanning Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from the Sydney central business district, central business district (CBD) to the North Shore (Sydney), North Shore. The view of the bridg ...

, and ends in front of the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

Other awards

To date, eight runners have competed in every Sydney Marathon, and have been dubbed "Blue Line Legends". In addition, runners who have completed at least 10 marathons are eligible to be inducted into the Bridge Club.

Other races

In addition to the marathon, a

, "Bridge Run", and a "Family Fun Run" are also held under the banner of the Sydney Running Festival. The Bridge Run was added in 2002, initially as a event, before being reduced to in 2005. The Bridge Run has since returned to being an AIMS certified distance. All the races finish at the

, except for the fun run, which ends at the

Sydney Conservatorium of Music The Sydney Conservatorium of Music (formerly the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music and known by the moniker "The Con") is a heritage-listed music school in Macquarie Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the old ...

less than a kilometre from the Opera House.

Winners

Key: Course record : Source (up to 2018):

Multiple wins

By country

Notes

References

{{IAAF Road Race Label Events Marathons in Australia Sports competitions in Sydney Annual sporting events in Australia