Cape Town Marathon 2026 is working towards being Africa’s first major. This year was a very important year for the marathon. It was set for the final assessment in 2025, but unfortunately the race was cancelled because of a storm. The decision was made to defer entries for runners, and also allow 2026 to be a provisional star. The marathon is complete, now the world waits for Abbots decision on whether Cape Town passes, and becomes the 8th World Marathon Major.
On 24th May 2026, I completed Cape Town Marathon for the first time. Cape Town was my 10th marathon of 2026, my 188th Marathon (plus) and my 140th time as an official pacer (including 77 marathons). I feel honoured to have been selected to be part of the pace team. I love running marathons around the world and so naturally the world marathon majors have a strong appeal to me. But I had been wanting to run Cape Town Marathon even before it was announced as a candidate race.
16 years ago I travelled through Africa with my wife, and we finished in Cape Town. It is a place we wanted to return to, and with half term, it was the perfect time to bring the whole family for an adventure.
We set off on Thursday at 09:00, and with an 11 hour flight, but only a 1 hour time difference, we landed at 21:00 (well we were delayed an hour because a passenger was thrown off the plane before we took off, but that was the schedule).
We have read and heard a lot about safety in South Africa, so we prepared to ensure we remained safe. We have not had any issues at all, but have avoided walking around in the dark, or down back alleys. When we arrived at the airport there were lots of people trying to offer us rides, but I was not interested in doing this. Instead I booked an Uber, and it arrived in minutes. A point to note for readers considering Cape Town Marathon. Uber is your friend. It is noticeably cheap, to the point I have been giving the highest of the 3 automatic tip options every time. A 10 minute trip from our accommodation to the waterfront has been costing about 2 pounds (3 dollars). A 30 minute drive from waterfront to Table Mountain was 7 pounds (10 dollars), and an hour journey from accommodation to Boulders Beach was 22 pounds (30 dollars). We have felt safe in Uber, and the cost makes it an easy choice to get around.
We stayed in a residence (like an air B&B) which was much cheaper than the hotels and we got a huge apartment which was perfect for the family. Walkable distance to the marathon expo and race start (although I used Uber on race morning because it was dark).
Family Adventures
Before I get on to the marathon, this was a family holiday. We have had so much fun already, and in a couple of days we will be going on for a 3 day safari to really make the most of our holiday. Full disclaimer, the safari was very expensive. It is not the sort of thing I would come and do alone, but with our family coming for the first time it is a must do. The first part of our adventure surrounded the marathon, now we move on to the family fun.
The weather was not fantastic on Friday. We had planned to go up Table Mountain but it didnt make sense because of visibility. So we went to Boulders Beach which is known for Penguins on the beach. It cost about 30 pounds to get in to the main areas for a family of 4 (although there are nearby areas you can see the Penguins without paying if you wanted.
We also stopped of at Peckish Penguin for an awesome Smash Burger for lunch, it was so lovely.
We then made our way to the expo to have a quick walk through and collect pacer flag. I got a lot of kit at the expo, the jacket was really good value, about 65 pounds. I almost didn’t buy the shoes, but I love running in adidas Boston, and actually had a pair that I was wearing, and it was the perfect replacement.
It was my boys birthday. There was a pacer meal, but I did not go, so we could have a birthday meal. Scott joined us and we went for a really amazing steak. It was more expensive than a lot of other restaurants, but good value and quality. My boy got a birthday desert which we arranged with the restaurant.
The next day the air was full of mist, so I was a little worried about going to Table mountain. So we decided to have a relaxed morning, went for a nice breakfast, then made our way to Table Mountain for about 1300, by which time it had started to clear (Sunday it was much clearer and Monday there wasn’t a cloud in the sky).
We had a lot of fun walking around Table Mountain, but there was also a restaurant at the top.
We had a few drinks, and we had fantastic views from where we were sitting.
When we came back we went for a nice meal at the waterfront, before having an early night. I made sure I checked my kit with a flatlay. Standard pre race checks.
Cape Town Marathon
Race morning was not a particularly early start compared to many large races. I was meeting my pace team at 0730 (for a 0840 start) so I left at 0700.
We had a big sub 4 #funbus. There were 2 sub 4 waves. The first was the bulk of runners who selected sub 4, they started on beach road. I was in the second wave with Tavon and Rushi, and we started at the stadium.
I am used to running various different pace strategies depending on the race and culture. In South Africa the pacers are known as bus drivers, which is perfect as I have always referred to my group as the funbus for over a decade. The strategy is not even pacing. We had a pace chart that had different times for every KM based on the course profile and building in fade. It also aimed for 3:58, and we were told to finish between 3:58 and 4:00. My ideal time would have been 3:59:30, but importantly we were part of a team, so I just ensured we stayed within target range.
It was a fantastic atmosphere throughout the race. I loved being surrounded by mountains pretty much the entire route.
The profile is undulating, but certainly not the most difficult. Personally for the world marathon majors I would rate New York and Boston as the hardest. I would put Cape Town and Sydney together as the next hardest. I would then put London and Tokyo, followed by Berlin and Chicago as the easiest.
The aid stations were frequent and consistent with water, powerade and coke every station, with some sections with fruit and sweets. It was hotter than I would like, but overall was not that bad. I think you are never going to know what you will get in Cape Town. 2 days before it was light rain and cool, and the day after was clear sky and hot. There were some shaded sections with a light breeze which were nice.
The strategy we used was to walk for 30 seconds every 6km. It is not what I usually do, but it worked fine. For the first half Tavon lead the pace and I was motivating runners with Rushi. I then took the lead for a section and the difficult climb between 31km and 33km I lead the pace at the front whilst others pulled behind. I then ran steady for a couple of km for the back of the bus to catch up.
The last 6km is an out and back on the waterfront. I was happy to ease off the pace as per the pace chart, but the bus stayed at the a steady 9:09 min mile (5:41 min km) so we didn’t deploy the fade as per the chart. I didn’t want to just finish on my own so I stayed with the bus and just focused on those at the back of the bus to pick up the pace.
I enjoyed Cape Town Marathon so much, and it was fantastic to finish strong, feeling good. At the finish I had many passengers with me, all coming to say hello and thank me for helping them achieve their time. I finished in an official time of 03:58:49, in the middle of the 03:58 – 04:00 target.
After the marathon I collected my bags with ease, and my family come to find me in the event village. There was International Hospitality which I got a beer and meal before heading to the pacer meeting area.
We spent the rest of the afternoon drinking in the sun and enjoying lovely food. Followed by a trip on the wheel during the sunset.
The next day we booked an escape room, which was a lot of fun. I expected the family to do it on Sunday but they wanted to wait to do it with me. Also on the Monday it was off peak, so it was like I went for free.
We then went wine tasting. We did a little sample at the expo and decided to make a nice trip of it. We went to Webersburg wine estate, and the backdrop was just outstanding. The actual tasting could be really cheap at about 5 pound per person, but the quality and experience was so worth it.
We had 2 x premium wine tasting experience (including 6 wines) which to be honest was probably enough. During the kids had a kids tasting experience with 4 juices.
We then went for a picnic, which included meats, cheeses, quiche, chicken, bread, honey nuts and fruit. Whilst the kids had a kids basket that included games, sweets and a choice of pizza or chicken.
We also purchased a bottle of brut for the picnic and some juice for the kids. Plus we purchased another bottle to take home with us. The whole thing cost 120 pounds. Which was great considering everything we purchased.
That nears the end of this chapter. Tomorrow we wake up and fly to Johannesburg where we will go for a 3 day Safari. Can’t wait.
Were you in Cape Town? Let me know about your trip. Thinking about coming, ask me your questions.