Runners Platform SA

The Nelson Mandela Marathon Cape Town runners have a new date to write into their diaries. On 18 October 2026, the city will host the first Nelson Mandela Marathon, a road running event that slots into the Western Province Athletics calendar alongside the club races, cross country leagues and school meets that already fill most weekends here. The race is organised by Golazo, working with the Nelson Mandela Foundation. Entries open at midday on 22 May 2026, and organisers are expecting around 20,000 runners and walkers across the various distances on offer. The main event is a full 42 km marathon starting on Strand Street and finishing at the Grand Parade. There's also a 21.1 km half marathon, a 10 km and a 5 km, so there's room for people who want to race hard and people who just want to be part of the day. Why the timing matters Race week runs from 11 to 18 October, and every entrant, regardless of distance, gets the bib number 466/64. That was Mandela's prison num...