The Race
| Next Race Date | 30 August 2026 (26th running) |
|---|---|
| Course type | Loop/lollipop: start and finish both on Main Street, Longford, running out through County Roscommon and County Leitrim via Tarmonbarry, Rooskey and Newtownforbes before returning |
| Registration | Open, direct online entry via longfordmarathon.com, no ballot. Online entry closes midnight the Friday before race day, with limited in-person entry at the Longford Arms Hotel the Saturday afternoon before. No race-day entry |
| Ballot Opens | Not applicable: open entry |
| Total finishers | Not confirmed |
| Avg race-day temp | Not confirmed. Late August in Ireland’s midlands is generally mild |
| Cutoff time | Not confirmed. The slowest published pacer is 4:15, with a 7:00am walker start ahead of the main 9:00am field implying a considerably longer accommodated finish window |
| Free race-day transport | Yes for Marathon Relay participants: organiser-run buses shuttle between Richmond Street and the Tarmonbarry, Rooskey and Newtownforbes changeover points |
| Course certification | AIMS certified. Historically accepted by the Boston Marathon as a valid qualifying-time source, though runners are advised to confirm current Boston qualification rules directly with the Boston Athletic Association |
The Four-Stage Marathon Relay
Alongside the individual marathon, Abbott Longford Marathon offers a Marathon Relay for teams of four, split into stages that mirror the marathon’s own route: Longford to Tarmonbarry (approximately 7 miles), Tarmonbarry to Rooskey (approximately 7 miles), Rooskey to Newtownforbes (approximately 7 miles), and Newtownforbes back to the Main Street finish (approximately 5 miles). Organiser-run buses shuttle relay participants between Richmond Street and each changeover point, departing at 9:15am, 9:45am and 10:30am, picking up the previous leg’s finishers on each run; runners can also arrange their own lift to and from changeover points instead of using the buses. Every relay team member receives their own goody bag, T-shirt and finisher’s medal, distinct from the standard individual marathon entry.
History
Abbott Longford Marathon reached its 26th running in 2026, making it one of the longer-established marathons in Ireland outside the Dublin Marathon itself, and it markets itself directly as “The Friendly Marathon in the Heart of Ireland.” The race is organised by Longford Marathon CLG and has drawn long-term title sponsorship from Abbott Laboratories, alongside the Longford Arms Hotel, which also serves as the event’s race headquarters and start/finish landmark on Main Street. The race weekend has grown to include a 5K, Half Marathon, Marathon, a 39.3-mile Ultra Marathon and a four-stage Marathon Relay, all starting and finishing at the same Main Street location. Longford Marathon has held long-standing membership of AIMS (the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races) and the organiser states it has historically submitted results accepted by the Boston Marathon for qualification purposes, a detail that has made it a recognised, if lower-profile, option among UK and Irish runners chasing a Boston-qualifying time on a flat, small-field course. No confirmed founding year, course record, or notable past winner has been sourced.
The course
The marathon starts and finishes on Main Street in Longford town, directly outside the Longford Arms Hotel. The course runs out through County Longford into County Roscommon and County Leitrim, passing through the villages of Tarmonbarry, Rooskey and Newtownforbes, the same three points used as changeover locations for the event’s Marathon Relay. A real finisher’s device GPS recording confirms the loop/lollipop shape returning to the same Main Street point: the route ranges only 39.6 to 59.1m in elevation across the full 42.2km, genuinely flat with gentle rolling. Total elevation gain is approximately 45m (148ft) per the organiser’s own figure, consistent with a flat, fast course.
Logistics Map
The map below shows the course: the loop through County Roscommon and County Leitrim via Tarmonbarry, Rooskey and Newtownforbes, starting and finishing on Main Street, Longford. Tap the marker for details.
Starts on Main Street outside the Longford Arms Hotel, heading out of County Longford into County Roscommon along the Shannon corridor.
The second 7-mile stretch, staying close to the River Shannon through the midlands countryside.
The third leg crosses back toward County Longford; energy drinks join the water stations from this point on.
The closing 5 miles back into Longford town and the finish on Main Street, the same point the race started.
Pacers
Yes. Marathon pacers run to 3:00, 3:15, 3:30, 3:45, 4:00 and 4:15, identifiable by pink pacer t-shirts and a balloon displaying their target finish time. Half Marathon pacers run separately at 1:30, 1:45, 2:00 and 2:15. Runners intending to walk the full marathon, and all Ultra Marathon participants, start at 7:00am, two hours ahead of the main 9:00am marathon and half marathon field; wheelchair participants start at 8:45am.
What to wear
Late August in Ireland’s midlands is generally mild rather than hot, and the organiser’s own race-weekend page notes, with dry humour, hoping for weather that is “good (but not too good)” for the runners. Given the 9:00am main start and the rural, largely unshaded course through open countryside, runners should prepare for a genuine possibility of Irish midlands rain regardless of the specific forecast on the day. The 7:00am walker and Ultra Marathon start means a longer total time on course for some participants, worth factoring into layering decisions.
Entry
Entry is direct and online only, with no ballot, via longfordmarathon.com. Online registration closes at midnight on the Friday before race day; there is no race-day entry under any circumstance, though limited in-person entry is available at the Longford Arms Hotel on the Saturday afternoon before, from 1:00pm to 5:00pm. Participants must be over 18 on race day for the Half Marathon, Marathon, Ultra Marathon or Marathon Relay. Entry transfer without organiser permission may result in disqualification or a ban from future events. All finishers across every distance receive a custom-designed medal. No fast-runner or GFA qualifying-time entry pathway exists; this is an open-entry race. Specific 2026/2027 entry fee has not been confirmed.
Fast Runner / GFA Standards
Not applicable. Abbott Longford Marathon has no fast-runner or GFA entry pathway.
Race Weekend
Expo
There is no separate ticketed expo; race number and race pack collection functions as this event’s equivalent, held at Race Headquarters in the main ballroom of the Longford Arms Hotel. Collection runs Saturday from 1:00pm to 6:00pm, and again on Sunday race morning from 6:00am, both at the same Main Street venue. New entries are also accepted in person during the Saturday afternoon window only.
Race Morning
The marathon and all other race-weekend events start and finish on Main Street in Longford town, directly outside the Longford Arms Hotel. Start times are staggered by category: walkers in the full marathon and all Ultra Marathon participants start at 7:00am; wheelchair participants start at 8:45am; the main marathon field, all half marathon participants and the Marathon Relay start together at 9:00am; the 5K Streets of Longford Road Race starts a few minutes after. Race number collection for the marathon and half marathon opens at 6:00am on race morning at the Longford Arms Hotel. A dedicated bag drop facility operates on race morning at the old Providers Building on Main Street; runners receive a ticket that must be produced to reclaim their bag. All races are chip timed using Champion Chip Ireland, with the timing chip attached to the back of the race number. Marathon Relay participants use organiser-run buses departing Richmond Street at 9:15am, 9:45am and 10:30am to reach the changeover points, picking up finishing runners from the previous leg on the same run.
Nutrition on Course
Drink stations on the Half Marathon, Marathon and Ultra Marathon courses are positioned approximately every 3 miles, offering water in both cups and bottles. Energy drinks join the water stations at later stages of the Marathon and Ultra Marathon, and at the 10-mile mark of the Half Marathon. Ultra Marathon participants have an additional on-course bag drop option: a dedicated team member will deliver pre-labelled nutrition packs to a runner’s requested mile marker, a service specific to the Ultra distance.
Spectating
This is a rural midlands course running through open countryside and small villages rather than a city with dense spectator infrastructure. The three relay changeover villages, Tarmonbarry, Rooskey and Newtownforbes, are the natural spectator points along the route beyond the Main Street start/finish itself. No confirmed public transport option to these villages for spectators without a car has been sourced; the relay buses described under Race Morning are for registered relay participants specifically, not general spectator transport.
Itinerary: Remain on Main Street, Longford to see the 9:00am start and the eventual finish, both at the same location. A car is the practical way to follow the route out to Tarmonbarry, Rooskey or Newtownforbes, but no specific driving/parking spectator guidance has been sourced from the organiser.
Post-Race Food
The organiser provides finisher medals across all distances and local musicians for on-the-day entertainment at the Main Street finish, but no specific finish-line food provision beyond drink-station refreshments has been sourced. No named restaurant in Longford town has been sourced with confidence.
Where to Stay
The marathon starts and finishes at the same point, Main Street in Longford town, so there is no separate start-versus-finish trade-off to make; every accommodation option here is judged on proximity to that single Main Street location.
Longford town centre
The clear base for this race. The Longford Arms Hotel, on Main Street, is the event’s own race headquarters and sits directly on the start/finish line. The Annaly Hotel, also on Main Street, and PVs Bar, Restaurant & Guesthouse, a short walk away on Ballymahon Street, both put a runner within easy walking distance of the start. Cathedral View Apartments, on the Dublin Road edge of town, offers a self-catering alternative.
The wider County Longford countryside
Offers a different pace for runners with a car. Keenans Boutique Hotel, in Termonbarry (the same village as the marathon’s first relay changeover point) in County Roscommon, puts a runner directly on the course itself, a genuinely unusual option for a marathon guide. Castlecor Historic Country House near Ballymahon, The Rustic Inn in Abbeyshrule, and The Richmond Inn in Clondra all sit within the organiser’s own stated 25-minute drive of Longford town.
Recommended areas
The event’s own race headquarters, sitting directly on the start/finish line, with number collection held in its ballroom. The single most convenient option for this race.
Also on Main Street, a short walk from the Longford Arms Hotel, a practical alternative once the race headquarters hotel itself is fully booked.
A guesthouse above a working bar and restaurant on Ballymahon Street, a short walk from Main Street, useful for runners wanting food on site the night before.
Self-catering apartments on the Dublin Road edge of town, a useful option for runners travelling as a group or wanting kitchen facilities the morning of the race.
A genuinely unusual option for a marathon guide: this hotel sits on the course itself, at the Tarmonbarry/Termonbarry changeover point.
Booking timeline
There is no ballot for this race, so demand builds steadily through the entry window that closes at midnight on the Friday before race day, rather than spiking around a single results date. Longford’s accommodation stock is genuinely limited compared with Ireland’s larger city marathons; the organiser’s own compiled accommodation list runs to only nine named properties across the town and surrounding countryside. Runners should book as soon as entry is confirmed, particularly for the Longford Arms Hotel itself.
See & Do
These attractions sit adjacent to Longford town, or a short drive into the surrounding midlands counties.
Royal Canal Greenway
Adjacent to Longford town. A flat, traffic-free walking and cycling path along the restored Royal Canal, running for miles in either direction; a genuinely low-effort option for the day after the race given its level, well-surfaced towpath.
Corlea Trackway Visitor Centre
Around 14 km from Longford town. An Iron Age timber trackway, dated to 148 BC, preserved and displayed in situ in a bog setting near Kenagh; a specific, unusual historical site rather than a generic heritage stop, though it requires a car to reach.
St Mel’s Cathedral
In Longford town centre, a short walk from Main Street. Longford’s 19th-century Catholic cathedral, rebuilt after a 2009 Christmas Day fire and reopened in 2014 with a notably restored interior.
Strokestown Park and Famine Museum
Around 19 km from Longford town, in Co. Roscommon. A restored Georgian estate house with an adjoining museum covering the Great Famine, drawing on the estate’s own historical records.
Lough Ree and the River Shannon
Around 19 km from Longford town, near Athlone. One of the Shannon’s larger lakes, with boat trips and lakeside walks near Athlone.
After the Race
The Abbott Longford Marathon runs in August. These itineraries stay close to the midlands around Athlone and Strokestown, or extend further to Dublin or Galway, suited to runners recovering from a flat, fast course.
Athlone Castle overlooking the Shannon, the town’s restaurant strip, and boat trips on Lough Ree.
A restored Georgian estate house and an adjoining Famine museum built on the estate’s own historical records.
A genuine change of pace from the midlands, with Dublin’s museums, Georgian squares and a far wider restaurant scene.
Galway’s Latin Quarter and the wider West of Ireland coast, a longer detour that rewards runners extending their trip.
Frequently asked questions
Should I stay near the start or the finish?
They are the same place. Abbott Longford Marathon starts and finishes on Main Street in Longford town, directly outside the Longford Arms Hotel, so there is no start-versus-finish decision to make.
How far in advance should I book a hotel?
Book as soon as your entry is confirmed. There is no ballot for this race, but Longford’s accommodation stock is genuinely limited, and the Longford Arms Hotel, the race’s own headquarters, is a natural first choice that fills early.
Is there free transport to the start?
Not for general runners, since the start and finish are the same Main Street location most accommodation is within walking distance of. Marathon Relay participants get free organiser-run buses to the changeover points.
What is the best area to stay?
Longford town centre, ideally on Main Street itself at the Longford Arms Hotel or the nearby Annaly Hotel, offers the shortest possible walk to both the start and finish line.
When does the expo open?
There is no separate multi-day expo. Race number and race pack collection takes place at the Longford Arms Hotel ballroom, Saturday 1:00pm-6:00pm and again Sunday race morning from 6:00am.
What is the weather typically like?
Not confirmed. Late August in Ireland’s midlands is generally mild with a realistic chance of rain, but a specific average temperature has not been sourced.
How do I get from the airport?
Not confirmed. Dublin Airport, roughly 90 minutes to 2 hours from Longford by road, is the geographically plausible main airport option, but no specific transfer route has been confirmed.
Is there a bag drop?
Yes, at a dedicated facility in the old Providers Building on Main Street, beside the Longford Arms Hotel. Runners receive a ticket that must be produced to reclaim their bag.
Should I bring a throwaway layer?
A sensible precaution given the early start times, 7:00am for walkers and the Ultra Marathon, 9:00am for the main marathon field, on an open rural course with little shelter.
How do I get back to my hotel after finishing?
The finish on Main Street sits within Longford town centre, so runners staying at the Longford Arms Hotel, Annaly Hotel or nearby guesthouses are within easy walking distance. Runners staying at countryside properties will need their own transport.