AJ Bell Great North Run 2026
The world's biggest half marathon. 60,000 runners from Newcastle across the Tyne Bridge to the coast at South Shields, with the Red Arrows overhead.
2 weeks to race day: the sharpening window
A full build no longer fits, but a sharp one does. This close in, the job is specificity and freshness: race-pace touches, open-water or brick rehearsal, and a taper your nervous system actually absorbs. No heroics; arrive fresh.
Building for this one? Training plans cover the sessions, the weekly shape and how the block is paced. The R.A.C.E. Framework explains why it is built that way.
Build my pacing and preparation plan.
Commit to the date and we will walk you to it: a countdown, honest guidance by email, and the debrief afterwards. Full adaptive training for running races is coming; nothing here pretends otherwise.
One confirmation email, then the road begins. Registering for the race itself stays with the organiser.
“The best atmosphere in British running. Do not bank time on the early descents; the rollers collect the debt by mile 10.”
The race
The course
No course maps for this race. The organiser publishes no downloadable route for any leg of this race, so there is nothing to draw a course map from. Everything below comes from the official course page, checked on the date at the foot of this section.
Newcastle to South Shields, and it is not the flat course its reputation suggests. It starts on the central motorway near the university, dips through the road tunnels where the Oggy Oggy chants start, and crosses the Tyne Bridge into Gateshead. Miles 3 to 5 climb, 5 to 8 give it back. Miles 8 to 12 climb again and that is the hard part of the day. Then a sharp drop to the sea at Mile 12, the first sight of the North Sea, and a flat-ish final mile along the South Shields seafront. 63,000 runners, entry by ballot, and the largest half marathon in the world.
Not yet confirmed for this edition: finish cut-off, elevation gain, drinks station spacing. We publish these only once they are on the official course page, so check there before you pace off anything here.
Course details verified against the official AJ Bell Great North Run course page on 14 August 2026. Courses change; the official page is always the last word.
Questions, answered
When is AJ Bell Great North Run 2026?
What distances can I race at AJ Bell Great North Run?
How hard is the course?
How long do I need to train for it?
How do I enter?
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Photograph of Newcastle to South Shields: Ymblanter, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Not official race photography.
This listing is for information only. Unbroken is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by AJ Bell Great North Run or its organiser. Details are based on publicly available information; names are used descriptively to identify the event. For accurate, up-to-date information and entry, always use the official event website.