Can’t manage a full marathon? Now you can split the distance with your three best mates in new London relay race
In the long run, it's better with friends
London loves a marathon – so much so that this year will see a (apparently one off) double marathon take place where two of the 26.2 mile races will have a back-to-back outing over a weekend next April. But if you’ve ever fancied the idea of running a marathon but in reality fall on your knees with a red face after about 10km (or in our case, 10 minutes) then this new London marathon might be right up your street.
Called a Team Marathon, the new concept basically allows you to split your standard marathon distance with your mates. Teamwork makes the dream of being able to casually brag “yeah, I’ve done a marathon” work. Specifically, you can split the traditional marathon with three of your mates.
Different from a bog-standard, school sports day-esque relay, the race has the whole team sticking together, each running their own 10.55km legs. It's up to you whether you stick together and run as a quartet or if someone jumps ahead and races to the finish line. Your team time will be your four legs added together. Imagine blending an adult sports day with run clubs and a touch of ‘organised sporting event’ professionalism, and you’ve pretty much got the new marathon.
The race will be debuting in London in May 2027, hosted in Hackney Wick because, well, sometimes you’ve got to go to where your audience is. According to the organisers, runners can expect “a race experience like no other - with live music stages, a brass band, DJs, cheer zones and spectator viewing areas packed around a short-loop course and central, festival grade race village”.
It looks as though you'll need to have your team already assembled to sign up, so you're not a man short on the day before the race. Unlike Hyrox, during the actual run, you split the legs equally between the four of you, so even if one person is a stronger runner, you all put in the same amount of legwork – literally. You can run your 6.55 mile leg however you want though, at any pace that suits you rather than having to keep up with a super speedy pace your predecessor was going for.
If it sounds like something you want to do but currently can't persuade any of your mates to sign up, there is a way around it. The team behind the race is currently organising individual tickets so you can sign up solo and find your team along the way. If April 2027 arrives and you're still looking, they'll match you with other solo runners.
Behind the race is sportswear brand Benchmark who clearly love exercising with their mates as much as we do. Explaining why it wanted to create a race like this, CEO Nick Keller said “80% of 18-24 year-olds are signing up with others, and a 59% increase in run club participation has been seen globally - the numbers don’t lie - but, while running has become increasingly social and community-driven, most race formats still centre on competition and individual achievement."
Team Marathon’s pre-sale for their debut London event on May 22nd 2027 will go live on August 26th at 10am, with 100 founding team tickets (accommodating 400 runners) available. These tickets will be priced at £26.20 per person. You can find out more and sign up for presale here.
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