Brighton Marathon 2027 training plan

When to start training

Every plan counts back from race day, so the start date depends on how many weeks you give it. These are the Mondays each length begins.

Start later and the builder still makes a plan, shorter and built as far as it safely can. Start earlier and it begins 24 weeks out, with easy running until then.

The course

The race starts in Preston Park and finishes on Hove Lawns. The organisers' course page did not name a year when we checked, so this is the route they publish now. Check it again nearer the day. In short:

• Miles 1 to 6. A flat start in Preston Park, then up Preston Park Avenue, a 20 m climb over 700 m. Down Preston Drove and broadly flat along London Road from Mile 2 to Mile 5, past the Theatre Royal and the Royal Pavilion and round The Level. A 12 m climb on St James's Street, and 200 m of block paving at about Mile 4.5.
• Miles 7 to 13. Out along Marine Parade and Marine Drive on the clifftop. Miles 9 and 10 roll, then a steady 14 m climb to a U-turn at Ovingdean. Back west to halfway, above Brighton Marina.
• Miles 14 to 19. Down to Madeira Drive and its cheer zones at Mile 15, then a flat out-and-back beside Volk's Electric Railway, and along the front past Brighton Pier and the i360.
• Mile 20 to the finish. Into Hove on Grand Avenue and Church Road, then Kingsway and Hove Promenade, past the beach huts at Mile 25, to the finish on Hove Lawns.

Drinks, as the course page listed them in October 2026: water at Miles 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12.5, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22 and 24 and at the finish. An electrolyte drink at Miles 7, 15, 21 and 23, gels at Miles 15 and 21, and refill points for your own bottle at Miles 4, 7.5, 12, 16.5 and 20. The course has mile markers and a marker every 5 km.

The 2027 start time was not published when we checked. The organisers say it will be confirmed about five weeks before race day. The cut-off is seven hours (organisers' FAQs).

Pace band

Set to even pace in mile splits, to match the mile markers. The organisers give a total climb of 477 feet and name the main rises, but they publish no mile-by-mile profile, so we have not shaped the splits.

What the course notes do tell you: the climbs are all in the first 11 miles, at Preston Park Avenue, St James's Street and on the coast road to Ovingdean. Expect to be a few seconds down after them and let the time come back gently on the flat. From Mile 14 the course is flat, and that is where even pace pays.

Weather in April

The Met Office's 1991 to 2020 averages for Shoreham Airport, its nearest climate station, about 10 km west of the start, give April an average high of 13.1°C and an average low of 5.2°C. It rains on about 9 days in the month, 45 mm in total.

Shoreham's average April wind speed is 8.6 knots, about 10 mph, a little more than inland stations such as Heathrow. Most of the second half runs along the seafront with nothing to shelter you, so if race day is windy, run the exposed miles by effort and let the band slip a little. Check the forecast in race week.

Fuelling and heat

Practise race-day fuel on your long runs, not for the first time on the day. The fuelling calculator works out carbs per hour and when to take each gel for your goal time. If race week turns warm, the heat pace calculator shows how much to slow down.

How to get a place

Where entry stood in October 2026:

• General entry. The weekend's main page says general entry is sold out. Its FAQ page still said the marathon was on sale, so check the entry page before you rely on either.
• Charity places. You apply to a charity that holds places, and fundraise for it. The organisers list the charities with 2027 places on Run for Charity.
• No deferrals. The organisers say entries cannot be deferred, transferred or refunded.