Confirmed
10 June 2026
First Major edition
23 May 2027
For Denny
Target, no place yet
Continent
Africa, a first
Dates, entries and plans can change. Ballots, bookings, injuries, illness, cancellations and new races all play a part. Denny sends a voice note every week and this site follows it.
Time until the first Cape Town Major
The list grew
On 10 June 2026, Abbott confirmed Cape Town as the eighth World Marathon Major. It is the first Major on the African continent, and its first edition as a Major runs on 23 May 2027.
The 2026 Cape Town race was run before the badge was official, so it did not count as a Major on the day. Runners who finished it and had been given provisional stars had those upgraded to full ones once the announcement landed.
For anyone already partway through the set, it is a straightforward piece of maths: one more long-haul flight, one more entry, one more training block. And a course that runs under Table Mountain, which is not the worst consolation.
There is no eight star medal
This is the part most people get wrong, so it is worth saying plainly. The Six Star Medal stays exactly as it is, awarded for the original six: Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York. There is no Seven Star medal and no Eight Star medal, and there is no plan for one.
What finishing all eight gets you instead is a place on the Eight Star Hall of Fame, recognition rather than metal, with commemorative coins available to buy.
A ninth Major is possible: Shanghai sits in the final stage of assessment, judged at the 2026 Shanghai Marathon on 6 December 2026. If it passes, the earliest anyone completes nine is December 2027.
Facts checked against Abbott World Marathon Majors announcements, September 2026.
One more city. Same plan.
Cape Town adds a second long-haul trip to the run. Flights, entry and a training block that lands in a British winter. If your brand wants to be on the first African Major, this is the one to be on.
What Denny's up against
How hard is the Cape Town Marathon?
Cut-off
6 hrs 30
Runners 2026
About 27,000
Late May highs
18 to 20°C
Flights from London
£550 to £1,000
Cape Town starts in Green Point by the stadium, runs through the city and out to Rondebosch, then comes back through Salt River, Woodstock and the Company's Garden before a finishing loop along the Sea Point seafront, with Table Mountain in view along the way. The race moved from October to May in 2026, partly to dodge the strong south-easterly wind: the October 2025 edition was called off moments before the start because of it.
The wind is still what runners talk about. The Sea Point loop takes the field 3 km out along the ocean, away from the finish, and then back, and a local runner quoted by Tempo calls it “the infamous loop of death”, with the wind seeming to blow against you both ways. There is also a long drag up towards Rondebosch Common. The cut-off is 6 hours 30, and late May brings highs of around 18 to 20°C, with the first winter rain arriving.
Sources, checked September 2026: Official 2026 route guide · Why May · Race FAQ · Daily Maverick · Tempo · Weather Spark · Kayak fares
Next Major
Boston
17 Apr 2028 · Target