Marine Corps Marathon

When is the 2027 Marine Corps Marathon?

The organizer had not posted a 2027 date when this guide was checked on November 10, 2026: the event page and the upcoming-events list both showed it as to be determined.¹³ The most recent race was Sunday, October 25, 2026.¹ This guide will be updated with the 2027 date, start times and registration windows once the organizer publishes them.

Every time, cutoff and date below describes the 2026 race unless it says otherwise.¹

What is the course like?

Runners start between the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery, head through Rosslyn and cross into Washington, D.C., where the route runs through Georgetown and along the National Mall.¹

At mile 12, Haines Point becomes the wear blue Mile, lined with photos and names of fallen service members and flags held by volunteers.¹

Around mile 20 runners cross the 14th Street Bridge back into Arlington, pass the Pentagon again, loop through Crystal City and finish with a climb to the Marine Corps War Memorial.¹ The event page links an elevation chart but gives no climb totals in its text.¹

The course has 12 water points and 10 aid stations, including stops in Georgetown, West Potomac Park, on the National Mall, on Eads Street and on Long Bridge Drive.¹

What are the cutoffs and time limits?

The Marine Corps Marathon requires at least a 14-minute-per-mile pace, and runners also have to clear three timed gauntlets.¹² Runners who miss the DC or Crystal City gauntlet are moved off the certified course and are not official finishers.¹ Straggler buses follow the rear pace to pick up runners who cannot hold it.¹

• DC Gauntlet, Independence Avenue: 12:33 p.m. (2026).¹
• Beat the Bridge, 14th and D Streets before the 14th Street Bridge at mile 20: 1:15 p.m. (2026).¹
• Crystal City Gauntlet: 1:49 p.m. (2026).¹
• Course closes: 3:05 p.m. (2026).¹

How do you register for the Marine Corps Marathon?

Entry for the 2026 race opened in stages.¹ The steps below are the 2026 sequence; check the event page for the 2027 windows before planning around them.

1. Priority registration: active-duty military, Runners Club members and the previous year's participants registered first, through links emailed to them.¹
2. Bundles: the Semper Fidelis Challenge (Marine Corps Historic Half plus the marathon) and the Distinguished Participant bundle went on sale next; both sold out for 2026.¹
3. Deferred runners and a last Runners Club window followed in February.¹
4. General registration opened on April 6 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern for the 2026 race, at the standard $240 entry fee.¹
5. If general entry is gone, a charity partner's guaranteed entry is the main way in. You contact the charity directly; the 2026 charity deadline was July 31.¹⁴
6. Decide at checkout whether to buy Refund Protect through TEAK. It is the only way to get money back, since transfers and deferrals are not allowed, and it has to be bought at registration or within five days of it.¹²

• Runners who have finished five Marine Corps Marathons can join the Runners Club, which guarantees access to registration each year.¹
• Seeded entry, which needs a certified marathon result from the past three years, was closed for 2026.¹
• Travel agencies also sell packages that include an entry.¹

Getting to the start and finish

Metro opened at 5:00 a.m. on race morning in 2026.¹ Runners walked to Runners Village in the North Pentagon Parking Lot from the Pentagon or Pentagon City stations.¹

Shuttles ran from 23rd Street and Crystal Drive in Crystal City to Runners Village from 4:30 to 6:30 a.m., with free parking in the underground lots at 23rd and Crystal Drive.¹ Drop-offs used the Kiss and Run at Army Navy Drive and Fern Street.¹

After the finish, the Rosslyn Metro station serves the Finish Festival, and return shuttles to Crystal City ran from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.¹

Everyone is screened entering the start and finish areas.¹ Bag check is a UPS truck at Runners Village, and bags are collected at the Finish Festival in Rosslyn.¹²

Packet pickup and expo

Bibs and shirts are collected only at packet pickup inside the Health and Fitness Expo, which in 2026 ran October 21 to 24 at the Building Museum.¹ Runners pick a pickup time through their confirmation email and bring the e-Card sent before the race plus a photo ID.¹

Someone else can pick up your packet with your e-Card, a copy of your ID and their own ID.¹ There is no race-morning pickup unless you bought the race day pickup option.¹

Race weekend: the 8K and Kids Run

In 2026 the 8K ran on Saturday, October 24, from West Potomac Park, with starts from 7:20 to 8:45 a.m.¹ It has the same 14-minute-per-mile pace requirement as the marathon.²

The Kids Run is a 0.8K fun run for ages 5 to 12, held the same Saturday morning between 9:00 and 10:00 a.m.¹

The same organization also puts on the Marine Corps Historic Half, the 17.75K, the Quantico 12K and a Turkey Trot.³

Who the Marine Corps Marathon suits

The 14-minute-mile pace and a 3:05 p.m. course close leave room for run-walkers, but the bridge and Crystal City gauntlets are firm, so runners near that pace should plan their first 20 miles around the 1:15 p.m. bridge time.¹²

The organizer describes the race as the largest marathon in the world that offers no prize money and the third largest in the United States.³ Runners must be at least 14 years old.²

Because the course is USATF-certified, it can be used as a Boston Marathon qualifier.¹