The Manchester Marathon is a long-distance running event in Greater Manchester, England. It was known as the Greater Manchester Marathon until the word "Greater" was dropped beginning with the (cancelled) 2020 edition of the race. The most recent marathon was held on 14 April 2024, and finished at Old Trafford Cricket Ground. The race was first held in 2012.[3] It is claimed that the race is the flattest marathon course in the UK, with only 54 metres (177 ft) of elevation.[4] The 2013, 2014 and 2015 Greater Manchester Marathon times have been declared invalid after the course was found to be 380 m (1,250 ft) too short.
History
The first marathon in the Manchester area was run in 1908 and started and finished at the Saracen's Head pub in Warburton, although at this point the run was only 20 mi (32 km). The first marathon to be run over 26 mi and 385 yards (42.195 km) was the race in 1909, which started in Sandbach, Cheshire and finished at the Fallowfield Stadium in Manchester. A marathon has been run along various routes in the Manchester area intermittently throughout the years with various start and finish points.[3] Until 2012, the last marathon to be held in the city was in 2002, with the 10 km (6.2 mi) Great Manchester Run superseding it as the major running event in Manchester.[5]
The 2020 edition of the race was cancelled due to the coronaviruspandemic, with all entries automatically remaining valid for 2021, and all registrants given the options of transferring their entry to another runner for a 10 GBP fee or obtaining a refund minus a 5 GBP administration fee.[a][7][8]
Similarly, the 2021 edition of the race, originally scheduled for April, was postponed to 10 October 2021 due to the pandemic.[9][10]
Course
The current course finishes at Old Trafford cricket ground and passes a number of famous Manchester landmarks, including the Old Trafford football ground.[5][11] It works its way through Chorlton, Hulme, Old Trafford, Stretford, Sale, Timperley, Altrincham, Urmston, Salford, and Manchester City Centre.[12]
The 2013, 2014 and 2015 route was subsequently found to be 380 m (1,250 ft) short of the correct distance.[13][14]
From 2020, the route changed to allow the inclusion of a 3 miles (4.8 km) loop through the city centre.[15]
Invalid races
The 2013, 2014 and 2015 Greater Manchester Marathon times have been declared invalid after the course was found to be 380 m (1,250 ft) too short in 2016. Subsequently, UK Athletics do not recognise times from those races. The error was corrected in time for the 2016 marathon. The Association of UK Course Measurers (AUKCM) said an accredited measurer had ridden the course in 2013 but indicated there had been an error in the calibration of the bicycle wheel. Marathon courses are measured out using a bicycle fitted with a counter to calculate distance by the turning of the wheels.[16]
