Men’s course record
2:01:48
Sisay Lemma · 2023
- Average pace
- 2:53 / km
- Terrain-adjusted
- +0.04 %
Valencia Marathon
Valencia, Spain The first Sunday in December Founded 1981
Out to the port, round the old city and home along the Turia gardens, to a finish laid over the water.
Overview
The finish is a blue walkway laid over the water at the City of Arts and Sciences, and the start is within sight of it. Between the two, the course makes a wide loop of the city.
It heads out to the port first, then north through the eastern districts to the Mestalla, Valencia CF's ground, at 15.0 km, and back east towards the sea. The second half is the old city: the Torres de Serranos at 28.7 km, the city hall square at 30.5 km, then out to the western end of the Turia gardens and home along them.
Sisay Lemma's 2:01:48 from 2023 is the course record. More than 30,000 finished in 2025, and the 2026 places went by ballot for the first time.
It heads out to the port first, then north through the eastern districts to the Mestalla, Valencia CF's ground, at 15.0 km, and back east towards the sea. The second half is the old city: the Torres de Serranos at 28.7 km, the city hall square at 30.5 km, then out to the western end of the Turia gardens and home along them.
Sisay Lemma's 2:01:48 from 2023 is the course record. More than 30,000 finished in 2025, and the 2026 places went by ballot for the first time.
- When
- The 2026 Valencia Marathon is on Sunday, 6 December 2026, starting at 8:15am local time on Beside the City of Arts and Sciences.
- Course
- Valencia's course climbs 73 m in all, with its lowest point at 2 m and its highest at 26 m.
- Entry
- Entry to Valencia is by ballot (sold out for 2026), and costs €80–180 for 2026.
- Field
- The 2026 Valencia Marathon has a marathon field of 36,000.
- Weather
- Across 31 years, Valencia's race-day temperature has a median of 12.4 °C.
- Records
- The Valencia Marathon course records are 2:01:48 (Sisay Lemma, 2023) and 2:14:00 (Joyciline Jepkosgei, 2025).
- Time limit
- Valencia's time limit is 5 hours 30 minutes.
Marathon Course · every marathon course, measured the same way
Valencia Marathon
Out to the port, round the old city and home along the Turia gardens, to a finish laid over the water. City of Arts and Sciences → City of Arts and Sciences, Valencia, Spain.
- Distance
- 42.2 km
- Ascent
- 73 m
- Descent
- 73 m
- Net
- +0 m
Course map and elevation
5 km splits marked · hover or drag the profile below to move along the courseElevation · a third-party GPX of the 2025 route, which the organiser hasn't changed for 2026 · Sonny 1" .hgt tiles — CC BY 4.0 · smoothed 100 m 2–26 m
—
0.08.516.925.433.942.3
kmmi — elev — grade — hover or drag the profile
The start is 3 m above sea level, and the lowest ground comes almost at once: 2 m by the port at 3.4 km. For the whole first half the course is never higher than 13 m.
The one rise is in the west. After the old city the ground climbs gently to the high point, 26 m at 34.9 km, at the western end of the Turia gardens. The steepest climbing kilometre, from 33.1 km, gains only 5 m.
From there it's downhill nearly all the way home, 23 m over the last 7.4 km. The chart draws three crossings of the Turia gardens as straight lines, because the elevation model reads the park floor under a bridge instead of the deck. Add up the energy cost of every gradient and the course comes out about level with a flat 42.195 km.
Take it with you
Course GPX Organiser's course map
The GPX is ours: our resampled line, a point every 25 m, carrying Sonny 1" .hgt tiles — CC BY 4.0 elevation rather than the GPS noise a watch file usually holds.
Sonny 1" .hgt tiles — CC BY 4.0, a third-party GPX of the 2025 route, which the organiser hasn't changed for 2026, smoothed 100 m · marathoncourse.com/marathons/valencia/ · checked 2026-09-24
How to enter: ballot odds
The 2026 race was the first to be allocated by ballot. Runners with a 2025 entry had a loyalty window from 11 to 15 December 2025. The ballot ran from 16 to 26 December, and the draw was on 12 January. It's sold out, and the organiser runs a waiting list.
The first 10,000 places cost €80 and the rest up to €180. Runners without a Spanish athletics licence also pay €5 for a day licence. A place can't be carried over to the next year, but it can be passed to another runner: for €5 until 6 November, then €25 until 26 November. Withdraw injured and you get 75 % back until 6 September, or half until 6 November.
The first 10,000 places cost €80 and the rest up to €180. Runners without a Spanish athletics licence also pay €5 for a day licence. A place can't be carried over to the next year, but it can be passed to another runner: for €5 until 6 November, then €25 until 26 November. Withdraw injured and you get 75 % back until 6 September, or half until 6 November.
History
The first Valencia marathon was run on 29 March 1981, the same day as the first London Marathon, by a field of several hundred. It was organised by a local running club, S.D. Correcaminos, which still organises it.
The change came in the 2010s. With the backing of the Fundación Trinidad Alfonso, Valencia became the first Spanish marathon to hold an IAAF Gold Label, in 2016, and was upgraded to Platinum in 2020. That year there was no mass race: an elite-only edition in December set records instead.
Since then it has been where the fastest runners come to debut. Kelvin Kiptum ran 2:01:53 here in 2022, his first marathon, and Sabastian Sawe won on his debut in 2024. Sisay Lemma's 2:01:48 in 2023 is still the course record, and that year a 41-year-old Kenenisa Bekele ran 2:04:19 for fourth.
The change came in the 2010s. With the backing of the Fundación Trinidad Alfonso, Valencia became the first Spanish marathon to hold an IAAF Gold Label, in 2016, and was upgraded to Platinum in 2020. That year there was no mass race: an elite-only edition in December set records instead.
Since then it has been where the fastest runners come to debut. Kelvin Kiptum ran 2:01:53 here in 2022, his first marathon, and Sabastian Sawe won on his debut in 2024. Sisay Lemma's 2:01:48 in 2023 is still the course record, and that year a 41-year-old Kenenisa Bekele ran 2:04:19 for fourth.
- 198129 March: a few hundred runners start the first race, on the same day as the first London Marathon
- 2016Valencia becomes the first Spanish marathon to hold an IAAF Gold Label
- 2020No mass race in the pandemic. An elite-only edition in December brings course records for Evans Chebet, 2:03:00, and Peres Jepchirchir, 2:17:16
- 2020Upgraded to a Platinum Label, still the only one held by a Spanish marathon
- 2022Kelvin Kiptum wins his first marathon in 2:01:53, 44 seconds outside the world record
- 2022Amane Beriso takes the women's record to 2:14:58
- 2023Sisay Lemma runs 2:01:48, the course record that still stands
- 2023Kenenisa Bekele, 41, finishes fourth in 2:04:19, a world best for a man over forty
- 2024Sabastian Sawe wins on his marathon debut in 2:02:05, the fastest time of the year
- 2025Joyciline Jepkosgei runs 2:14:00, almost a minute under the women's record
- 2025Amanal Petros runs 2:04:03 for a German record, and 30,777 finish, the first field over 30,000
- 20266 December, and the first year places were drawn by ballot
1990200020102020
Course records
Pace is derived from the certified distance. Terrain-adjusted figures come from the same model that ranks every course on this site.
Women’s course record
2:14:00
Joyciline Jepkosgei · 2025
- Average pace
- 3:11 / km
- Terrain-adjusted
- +0.04 %
Race day: start times and cut-offs
- 8:15am
- 3:15pm
- Time limit
- 5h 30m
- Ten, and the finish
Numbers are only handed out at the expo at Feria Valencia on the Friday and Saturday before the race, and there's no collection on race morning. A friend can collect yours if you authorise them through the registration platform.
Nine waves start by predicted finish time, the first at 8:15am and the last at 9:35. The limit is five and a half hours from when you cross the line, with a cut-off at 25 km at 12:57pm.
There are ten drinks stations, from 5 km to 40 km, and food as well as drinks after the finish.
Nine waves start by predicted finish time, the first at 8:15am and the last at 9:35. The limit is five and a half hours from when you cross the line, with a cut-off at 25 km at 12:57pm.
There are ten drinks stations, from 5 km to 40 km, and food as well as drinks after the finish.
The morning, hour by hour
- 8:15am
- First wave
- 9:35am
- Last wave
- 12:57pm
- Cut-off at 25 km
- 3:15pm
- Finish closes
Cut-offs
- 25 km · 25.0 km
- 12:57pm
- Finish · 42.2 km
- 3:15pm
The organiser's 2026 regulations. The limit is 5 hours 30 minutes net. Runners who reach 25 km after 12:57pm must stop there.
Race-day weather, 1995–2025
- Median
- 12.4 °C
- Warm years
- 2 of 31
- Wet years
- 4 of 31
Race-day mean temperature, 1995-2025. Lime marks the hottest edition; the coldest and wettest carry a label only, so the colour still means one thing.
Frequently asked questions
Is Valencia a flat course?
Very nearly. It climbs 73 m in all and never rises more than 26 m above sea level. The first half stays under 13 m. The one gentle rise is in the west, and the last 7.4 km run downhill to the finish.
Sonny's LiDAR DTM of Europe, sampled every 25 m, smoothed over 100 m. Raw-to-smoothed ratio 1.79.
How does the Valencia ballot work?
For 2026 it ran from 16 to 26 December 2025, after a loyalty window for runners already entered for 2025, and the draw was on 12 January. The race is sold out, and places that come free go to the waiting list.
The organiser's registration page for 2026.
What is the time limit?
Five and a half hours from when you cross the start line, and the finish closes at 3:15pm. There's one cut-off on the way: anyone who reaches 25 km after 12:57pm has to stop.
The organiser's 2026 regulations.
Is it a fast course?
Yes. Sisay Lemma ran 2:01:48 here in 2023 and Joyciline Jepkosgei 2:14:00 in 2025. John Korir won the 2025 men's race in 2:02:24, and Amanal Petros ran a German record, 2:04:03, in second.
Race results; World Athletics' report of the 2025 race.
Where exactly is the finish?
On a walkway laid across the pools at the City of Arts and Sciences, so the last few metres are run over water. The start is a few hundred metres away, and the two are 55 m apart as the crow flies.
The organiser's course page; this site's course line.
Can I defer my place?
No. A place can't be carried over to the next year for any reason. You can pass it to another runner, for €5 until 6 November or €25 until 26 November, and an injured runner can get part of the fee back.
The organiser's 2026 regulations.
Could a world record be ratified in Valencia?
Yes. The course finishes at the height it starts, 55 m from the start line, so it passes both World Athletics tests with room to spare. It's been a Platinum Label race since 2020.
Heights and the 55 m gap from this site's course line, checked against World Athletics Competition Rule 31.21.
How many people run it?
The 2026 race is capped at 36,000 and sold out. In 2025, 30,777 finished, the first time Valencia's field passed 30,000.
Organiser figures for the 2026 edition.
What is the weather like on race day?
About 12.4 °C during a typical race: that's the median across 31 years, which have run from 7.1 °C to 17.7 °C. 4 of the 31 were wet.
ERA5 reanalysis for the race date, 1995-2025.
Can I use a time here to qualify for Boston?
Valencia is certified, and it finishes at the height it starts, so the B.A.A.'s downhill adjustment, which begins at 1,500 ft of net loss, has nothing to act on. The last 7.4 km run gently downhill to the finish, losing 23 m.
Net drop +0 m from this site's course line; 2027 adjustment None. Certification platinum label: World Athletics Platinum Label since 2020; record-eligible.
How accurate is the elevation figure?
It comes from Sonny 1" .hgt tiles — CC BY 4.0, sampled every 25 m along the course line and smoothed over 100 m. The raw-to-smoothed ratio here is 1.79. Around 1.3 means the model is reading the ground, not rooftops; above about 2.0 the total climb carries real noise, and the net change is the sturdier number.
0 missing samples · 3 bridge spans corrected.
Sources
Every fact on this page, its source, and the date it was checked · 7
| Fact | Source | Verified |
|---|---|---|
| Course line | Third-party GPX for the 2025 edition. The organiser has announced no change for 2026. The file measures 42.631 km, 1.03 % long, from 748 points; our resampled line measures 42.337 km, so distances on this page run about 0.3 % long. Archived with its hash in data/raw/sources. | 2026-09-24 |
| Elevation | Sonny's LiDAR DTM of Europe (CC BY 4.0), sampled every 25 m, smoothed over 100 m. Raw-to-smoothed gain ratio 1.79. The model's 30 m cells are coarse for a course this flat. Three bridges over the Turia gardens were straightened between their ends, because the model reads the park floor below the deck. | 2026-09-24 |
| Race-day weather | ERA5 reanalysis via the Open-Meteo archive, 1995–2025 at the start, 08:00–14:00 local, sampled on the first Sunday in December. That rule reproduces the 2023, 2024 and 2025 dates. 2020, when only an elite race was held, is included. | 2026-09-24 |
| Course records | Sisay Lemma 2:01:48 (2023) and Joyciline Jepkosgei 2:14:00 (2025), checked against World Athletics' report of the 2025 race, which broke only the women's record. | 2026-09-24 |
| Entry and field | The organiser's 2026 regulations: a maximum of 36,000 numbers, €80 for the first 10,000 and up to €180 for the rest. 30,777 finished in 2025, from the organiser's finishers' magazine. | 2026-09-24 |
| Race day | The organiser's 2026 regulations: nine waves from 8:15 to 9:35am, a 5 h 30 min net limit, a cut-off at 25 km at 12:57pm, and the finish closing at 3:15pm. | 2026-09-24 |
| Record eligibility | World Athletics Competition Rules, Book C, Part III — Competition Rule 31.21: a record course may lose no more than 1 m per kilometre, and its start and finish may be no more than 21.098 km apart. Valencia starts and finishes at the same height, 55 m apart. Inside both. | 2026-09-24 |
Until the Valencia Marathon · 6 Dec 2026
— days
— hrs— min— sec
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