The

Sanlam Sanlam Limited is a South African financial services group headquartered in Bellville, Western Cape, South Africa. Sanlam is one of the largest insurance companies in Africa. It is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Namibian Stock ...

Cape Town Marathon is a City Marathon (42.2 km) held in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

, South Africa, first held in its current form in 2007. Available distances include the marathon, a 10K, a 5K, and two trail runs of length 22 km and 12 km. The marathon is held on a fast and flat course, starting and finishing in Green Point, near the

Cape Town Stadium The Cape Town Stadium (; ; known until 2025 as the DHL Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is an association football (soccer) and rugby union stadium in Cape Town, South Africa, that was built as part of the country's hosting of the 2010 FIFA World ...

. The Cape Town Marathon is also the host of the South African marathon championships. The marathon is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by

World Athletics World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport ...

History

First iteration

In 1994, the first iteration of the Cape Town Marathon was organised by Celtic Harriers running club. It started and finished in Pinelands. In 1996, the Cape Town Marathon was won by Josia Thugwane, who went on to win the men's Olympic Marathon at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

in Atlanta, Georgia.

Second iteration

In 2005 and 2006, a separately organised marathon was also held in Cape Town.

Current era

The first Cape Town Marathon (in its current format) was run in September 2007. From 2007 to 2013 the race was organized by Western Province Athletics, under a corporate sponsorship agreement with the national federation, Athletics South Africa. From 2014 its name changed to the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, and it is being run under a joint partnership between Western Province Athletics, the City of Cape Town and Asem Running. The 2013 men's winner Lindikhaya Mthangayi (2:17:02) was stripped of his title in 2014 due to a failed doping test for the steroid methandienone. The original runner-up Paul Manawa was elevated to first place as a result.Hauman, Riël (2014-05-27)
Cape Town Marathon Winner DQ’d For Doping
Competitor. Retrieved on 2015-09-21. In 2014, 2015 and 2016 it was accredited with IAAF Silver Label status. In 2017 it was the first African Marathon to achieve IAAF Gold Label Status, which it continues to achieve. In 2018, Stephen Mokoka of South Africa set the men's course record at 2:08:31. In 2019, Celestine Chepchirchir of Kenya set the women's course record at 2:26:44. The 2020 in-person edition of the race was cancelled due to the

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the comm ...

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, with all registrants given the option of obtaining a full refund.

Other races

In addition to the marathon, the event includes the Sanlam Cape Town 10 km PEACE RUN / Walk and the Sanlam Cape Town 5 km PEACE RUN / Walk. In partnership with Ryan Sandes, the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon presents the Cape Town Trail Marathon. This mountain marathon includes a 46km marathon, 22km trail and 11km trail which all run through the

Table Mountain National Park Table Mountain National Park, previously known as the Cape Peninsula National Park, is a national park in Cape Town, South Africa, proclaimed on 29 May 1998, for the purpose of protecting the natural environment of the Table Mountain chain, and ...

Environmental impact

The marathon is accredited as a Climate Neutral event and achieved

zero waste Zero waste, or ''waste minimization'', is a set of principles focused on waste prevention that encourages redesigning resource life cycles so that all products are repurposed (i.e. "up-cycled") and/or reused. The goal of the movement is to avoid ...

to landfill.

Sponsorship

The marathon is sponsored by Sanlam and City of Cape Town.

Winners

Key:

Multiple wins

By country

Notes

References

;List of winners
ARRS - Race series: Nedbank Cape Town

Association of Road Racing Statisticians The Association of Road Racing Statisticians is an independent, non-profit organization that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics regarding road running races. The primary purpose of the ARRS is to maintain a valid list of world road record ...

. Retrieved on 2015-09-21. {{Cape Town, sports Marathons in South Africa Half marathons in South Africa Sports competitions in Cape Town Recurring sporting events established in 2007 2007 establishments in South Africa