The Race
| Next Race Date | Sunday 21 March 2027 |
|---|---|
| Course type | Loop: start and finish at the same sports site |
| Registration | Open online entry; fee bands rise with registrations |
| Ballot opens | No ballot |
| Start | Sport Vlaanderen Gent, Zuiderlaan 14, 09:00 |
| Finish | Indoors in the Topsporthal, at the same sports site |
| Total finishers | Not confirmed |
| Avg race-day temp | Not confirmed |
| Cutoff time | 6 hours |
| Free race-day transport | To be Confirmed |
| Course certification | To be Confirmed |
History
The Ghent Marathon is run by Golazo and first took place in 2017, when the organiser says about 1,100 people took part across the event. It has grown into a weekend of more than 18,000 entrants across the distances, and the marathon itself sold out at the latest edition with 5,650 registrations. Registrations are not finishers, and the page does not present them as such.
The sponsor’s name was added to the race around the planned 2020 event, which is why the race appears as Sofico Gent Marathon on entry sites and as Ghent Marathon or Gent Marathon everywhere else. The organiser and the sponsor count editions differently, so this page does not give an edition number. The race marks ten years since its first running in 2017.
Steven Verschuere won the men’s race twice in a row, the second time in 2:19:46. The organiser’s own interview calls that a personal best, while a results site calls it a course record, so the page does not claim a record. The organiser supports two charities for the next edition, Sportaround and Kom op tegen Kanker, offers an 80 per cent reduction through the Flemish UiTPAS scheme and runs a Mini Marathon for Ghent primary pupils a few days earlier.
The course
The marathon starts at the Sport Vlaanderen Gent sports site on Zuiderlaan and finishes indoors in the Topsporthal on the same site. The start is not in the old town, so a runner staying beside the cathedral still needs a transfer to the sports site at the beginning of the day.
The organiser is designing the anniversary route with the city. It promises the historic centre with the three towers of Ghent, a passage through the Planet Group Arena football stadium and the indoor finish. The full map and GPX are to follow, so the order of the districts is not yet confirmed. The line on the map further down shows a previous route for orientation only.
The organiser gives no elevation figure. The city sits in a low-lying river plain, so the effort comes from corners, crowds and the narrow centre streets and not from hills.
Kilometre by kilometre
Start and finish site. Both are at Sport Vlaanderen Gent on Zuiderlaan, with bag drop, changing rooms and showers in the sports buildings. The marathon starts at 09:00 and the half marathon at 13:30, so the site is still busy long after the marathon has finished.
Through the centre. The organiser promises the historic centre with the three towers. Earlier runners have described crowded, narrow streets in the opening stretch, strong support in the centre and marshalled tram crossings. Treat those as questions to check against the final map and not as fixed features. Keep to the marshalled line, cross any rails square-on and avoid cutting across other runners near the aid tables.
Stadium and return. The Planet Group Arena passage is promised. The organiser has not said where it falls, whether runners enter the pitch area or how the final approach to the indoor finish is laid out.
Aid and limit. Stations are promised about every 5 km with water, sports drink and food, toilets at each one and medical support on the course and at the finish. The limit is six hours, after which the course reopens and slower runners can be withdrawn. Past that point you are on ordinary roads.
The start is at the sports site and not in the old town. Arrive early enough for bag drop and the toilets, and check the transport plan published a few weeks before the race.
The organiser promises the historic centre and the three towers. Expect narrower streets and more crowd noise than at the start.
The football stadium passage is promised. Its position in the race is not yet published.
The race finishes indoors on the sports site. The final approach is not yet published.
Course Map
The organiser is designing the next route with the city and will publish the map and GPX later. The line shows a previous route for orientation only. Tap a marker for the start and finish site, the stadium, the city landmarks and the station, and scrub the slider or press play to move the orange marker along the line with the elevation profile beneath it.
Pacers
Experienced pacers run with coloured flags. Target times are announced closer to the race.
The organiser is designing the next route with the city. It promises the historic centre, the three towers, the Planet Group Arena and an indoor finish, and will publish the map and GPX later. The line on the map shows a previous route for orientation only.
The start, finish, bag drop and number collection are at the sports site on Zuiderlaan, not in the old town. Plan the transfer from your hotel and check the mobility plan, which is published a few weeks before the race.
Race day is in the third week of March, and the start is at 09:00. March in Flanders is cool and changeable, with damp mornings, wind across the open sports site and a real chance of rain. Start-hour temperatures are not published.
A removable layer is useful for the wait at the start. No clothing-donation scheme has been confirmed, so wear something you can afford to lose or hand it to a supporter before the start. Gloves that can go in a waistband earn their place, and road shoes with decent grip suit cobbled and wet centre streets. Check the forecast the week before and again the evening before.
Entry
Entry is open and online, with prices that rise in four bands as registrations build: €90 for the first 1,000, €105 up to 3,000, €110 up to 6,000 and €115 after that. The two cheapest bands are struck through on the registration page, so expect to pay €110 or €115. Check the checkout total, because tax and fees can alter it. The marathon shirt is included. Fee bands are not a published cap.
Registration opened on 8 September and closes on Saturday 20 March at 23:59 if places remain. There is no registration on site, and the organiser notes that recent editions have sold out. Entries made by 22 February get a named bib. Numbers are not posted. Group registration closes on the same date, with a minimum of ten for collective collection, and later changes are made on site for €12 each. A name change at the desk needs identification. Moving down in distance is free, and moving up means paying the difference, subject to stock.
Optional cancellation cover can only be bought at registration. With it, 80 per cent of the fee is refunded until 20 December, 50 per cent until 20 January and nothing afterwards. The cover itself and any extras are not refunded.
Kom op tegen Kanker offers an entry to anyone who raises at least €500, and Sportaround is also supported. Whether charity places remain once the public race has sold out is not confirmed. Flemish residents eligible for the UiTPAS scheme get an 80 per cent reduction. There is no ballot, no good-for-age route and no fast-runner standard, and no official tour-operator packages are published.
Fast runner standards
There is no good-for-age, qualifying or fast-runner entry. Charity places and the UiTPAS reduction are separate routes.
Official Ghent Marathon site →Race Weekend
Expo
Number collection is at the event site, Sport Vlaanderen Gent, Zuiderlaan 14. The hours are Friday 19 March from 12:30 to 18:30, Saturday 20 March from 10:00 to 17:00 and Sunday from 07:30 to 13:45. Sunday hours run late for half marathon entrants, so a marathon runner must collect before a 09:00 start and should not plan around the 13:45 close. Friday or Saturday is the sensible choice.
An email with your personal number and e-ticket arrives at most a week before. If it has not come, look up the number on the organiser’s participant page and show identification. Someone else can collect with the confirmation email, the personal number or the e-ticket. Show the envelope to receive the shirt. Your size is not guaranteed, and earlier collection improves the chance. Packs are never posted. No exhibitor list or commercial expo is published.
Getting to the start
The marathon starts at 09:00 at the Sport Vlaanderen Gent site. The half marathon starts at 13:30, so do not use its timings. Free bag drop uses the tag supplied with your number and the bib to reclaim, at your own risk. Changing rooms and showers are in the sports buildings. Opening times for bag drop and the pens are not published, so allow generous time for the queue and the toilets.
The organiser says its mobility plan appears a few weeks before the race, so no shuttle, parking or bus detail is given here. Check the final plan, plan a backup walk or taxi and avoid driving towards road barriers. Agree a meeting place with supporters outside the finish restrictions.
Nutrition on course
The organiser promises aid stations about every 5 km with water, sports drink and food, toilets at each one and medical support on the course and at the finish. The exact kilometres and products are not yet published, and gels are not mentioned. Cup or bottle format, personal bottles and carbohydrate content are also unconfirmed. Carry tested gels and plan your fuelling by time until the final list appears.
Spectating
The sports site is outside the old town, so supporters must choose between seeing the start and finish and seeing the centre. The finish site is the most reliable place to wait, but the course route and the transport plan are not yet published. A live-tracking app is planned and gives an estimate and not a guarantee of position. The plans below are proposals.
- Wait at the sports site for the start and the finish
- Lowest movement, with the most reliable meeting point
- Seating and access details are not confirmed
- Watch the centre passage once the route is published, then travel back to the sports site
- Check De Lijn arrangements, which are not yet published
- A fast runner may finish before you return
- Choose a viewing point near the stadium passage and meet the runner afterwards
- Stadium viewing rights are not promised
- Agree a meeting place outside the finish restrictions
Post-race food
The city’s tourist office lists Greenway, a vegetarian restaurant, Multatuli, which serves meals by the river, and the Marriott Ghent Restaurant on Korenlei, serving contemporary Flemish cooking, among the places open on Sundays. None of them is an official race meal.
Reserve rather than hope for a walk-in table, because the tourist office itself recommends booking on Sundays. A familiar plate of starch and protein works better than a tasting menu straight after 42 km. A hotel restaurant simplifies the evening if the trip back from the sports site has been tiring.
Where to Stay
The choice in Ghent is between the old town and the race. The start, finish and number collection are all at the sports site near Watersportbaan, while the sights are in the historic centre, about 2.5 km away.
Near the sports site
The best base for race convenience, but the verified hotel choice is smaller. Check the access plan once it is published.
Gent-Sint-Pieters station
The easiest base for rail arrivals, and the point the previous mobility plan used. Hotel Chamade and the Carlton Hotel are in this part of town, about 2.4 km from the sports site. Whether a shuttle runs again is not confirmed.
Korenlei and Graslei
The scenic choice, with the Marriott on the river, 2.5 km from the sports site. Expect a longer journey on race morning and more evening noise.
Cathedral and town hall
The NH Gent Belfort sits near the town hall. It suits a sightseeing weekend and not an early start.
Patershol
A restaurant district in the northern centre. It makes for a good evening and a more complicated early transfer.
Ask about early breakfast, luggage storage and late checkout, and check access under any traffic restrictions. A low headline price in an outer district can lose its advantage once you add a taxi.
Recommended hotels
A three-star hotel near the station, listed by the tourist office. A sensible base for rail arrivals. Check whether a race shuttle runs and when breakfast starts.
A boutique city hotel on the tourist office’s list. Check the real distance to the sports site.
A riverside hotel with a restaurant, good for the old town. Race morning needs a transfer.
A four-star hotel near the town hall. Central for sights, and not close to the start.
Booking timeline
Entry is open now and the race has sold out before, so secure your place and then book a room you can cancel. The cheapest fee bands are already used up. That says nothing about hotel availability.
The organiser has no confirmed hotel partner, so avoid any third party claiming to sell an official package. Keep your transport flexible until the mobility plan appears a few weeks before the race. Ask each hotel about early breakfast, Sunday luggage storage and late checkout or shower access, and record the total cost, the city tax and the cancellation date. A Friday to Monday stay gives time to collect your number, run, recover and travel on.
See & Do
The sights are in the historic centre, 2.5 km from the sports site, and the three below are within a few hundred metres of the Belfry.
Ghent Altarpiece at St Bavo’s
The visitor centre next to the cathedral tells the story of the altarpiece by the Van Eyck brothers. It is a seated, indoor visit that suits tired legs. Check which panels are on display during restoration, and check opening days, because many Belgian museums close on Mondays.
Graslei and Korenlei
The two quays face each other across the Leie in the old harbour. A short, flat walk with plenty of benches.
Canal boat trip
A seated way to see the centre from the water. Confirm that the operator runs in March.
Gravensteen
The medieval castle of the Counts of Flanders, in the middle of the city. It has steep stairs, so leave it for later in the week.
After the Race
March is cool and often wet, and Bruges, Antwerp and Brussels are each about an hour or less by rail from Gent-Sint-Pieters.
A medieval canal town with a flat centre, a short train ride from Gent-Sint-Pieters.
A port city with museums, a station worth seeing and a flat centre.
Museums with lifts, the Grand-Place and a direct train to the airport.
Bruges first for a quiet two days, then Antwerp, then a rail route to Brussels Airport.