Top 10 Best Running Events Worldwide 2026

The fastest course in the world has produced more world records than any other marathon, with pancake-flat streets and a finish through the Brandenburg Gate that gives runners chills.

From Greenwich to The Mall past Tower Bridge and Big Ben, London's marathon combines world-class elites with costumed charity runners in a celebration of British eccentricity and endurance.

The world's oldest annual marathon requires a qualifying time to enter, making it running's most exclusive major. Heartbreak Hill and the Boylston Street finish are the sport's holiest ground.

The 171-kilometer circumnavigation of Mont Blanc through France, Italy, and Switzerland is ultrarunning's World Cup — a brutal, beautiful test that takes elites over 20 hours.

Japan's impeccably organized major marathon features the most respectful and enthusiastic crowds in running, with spectators bowing and offering food along the course through the capital.

The world's oldest and largest ultramarathon alternates between 87-kilometer "up" and "down" runs between Durban and Pietermaritzburg, with a 12-hour cutoff that crushes dreams annually.

Six days and 250 kilometers through the Sahara Desert carrying your own supplies — the "toughest footrace on Earth" is an extreme test of self-sufficiency and mental fortitude.

Over 5,000 stone steps on the ancient Great Wall make this one of the most grueling and photogenic marathon courses ever conceived, with elevation changes that destroy quads.

Running down the Pacific Coast Highway with crashing ocean waves, redwood forests, and the iconic Bixby Creek Bridge makes Big Sur the most scenically stunning road marathon on Earth.