Australian Running Events 2026: The Complete State-by-State Race Guide

Australia's Race Season Is Here

Whether you have a spring marathon circled on the calendar or you are still figuring out which event to enter, Australia's race calendar for the second half of 2026 is stacked. From the flat, fast courses of the Gold Coast to the remote red-dirt roads near Uluru, there is an event for every runner at every level. This guide breaks it all down, state by state, across every major distance.

Use it to find your next race, plan your training block, and get race day sorted before entries close. If you have just picked a half marathon, our 12-week half marathon training plan is a good place to start.

2026 Australian Race Calendar: Quick Reference

Date	Event	State	Distances	Type
16-17 May	Great Ocean Road Running Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 14km, 6km	Road / Trail
17 May	Run Shellharbour	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
17 May	Logan Running Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
17 May	Moggill Marathon	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km	Road
23 May	ASICS Runaway Noosa Marathon	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
24 May	Bayside Run Festival	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
24 May	Woodlands Trail Run	VIC	Marathon, Half, 11km	Trail
31 May	Bargara Lighthouse Running Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
7 Jun	Brisbane Marathon Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
7 Jun	Great Kanku-Breakaways Bolt	SA	Marathon, Half, 10km	Trail / Outback
7 Jun	Mildura Riverfront Marathon Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
7 Jun	Run Fest South West Rocks	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
14 Jun	Bay to Bay Running Festival	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
14 Jun	Rottnest Running Festival	WA	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
14 Jun	Traralgon Marathon and Running Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
20 Jun	Surf Coast Trail Marathon	VIC	Marathon, Half, 25km	Trail
21 Jun	Kowen Winter Trails	NSW/ACT	42km, 22km, 11km	Trail
28 Jun	Pichi Richi Marathon	SA	Marathon, Half, 10km	Road / Outback
4-5 Jul	Gold Coast Marathon	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5.7km	Road (fast/flat)
5 Jul	Broome International Airport Marathon	WA	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
5 Jul	Bibra Lake RunningWorks Festival	WA	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
9-11 Jul	3 Marathons in 3 Days	QLD	3 x Marathon	Multi-day
12 Jul	7Cairns Marathon Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
18-19 Jul	Airlie Beach Marathon Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
18-19 Jul	You Yangs Trail Running Festival	VIC	42km, 28km, 14km, 7km	Trail
19 Jul	Alice Springs Running Festival	NT	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
19 Jul	Goldfields Pipeline Marathon	WA	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
25 Jul	Australian Outback Marathon	NT	Marathon, Half, 11km, 6km	Trail / Outback
25-26 Jul	Yeppoon Running Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
26 Jul	Mad Max Marathon Festival	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road / Outback
2 Aug	Sunshine Coast Marathon Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km, 2km	Road
2 Aug	McDonald's Townsville Running Festival	QLD	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km, 2.5km	Road
8 Aug	Scenic Rim Ultra	QLD	80km, 50km, 25km	Trail Ultra
8 Aug	The Berry Long Run	VIC	42km, 21km, 10km	Trail
15-16 Aug	Shepparton Running Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
15 Aug	Surf Coast Wonderfalls Trail Run	VIC	42km, 22km, 11km	Trail
16 Aug	Christmas Island Marathon	WA (CI)	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road (unique)
22 Aug	Transcend Trails	WA	65km, 32km, 16km	Trail Ultra
23 Aug	Barossa Marathon Festival	SA	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
23 Aug	Kangaroo Island Marathon	SA	Marathon, Half, 10km	Trail / Road
23 Aug	Mudgee Running Festival	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
30 Aug	TCS Sydney Marathon	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road (World Marathon Major)
30 Aug	Coffs Harbour Running Festival	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
4-6 Sep	Flinders Island Running Festival	TAS	Marathon, Half, 10km	Road / Trail
6 Sep	Beach to Brother	NSW	Marathon, Half, 11km	Trail / Road
6 Sep	Dubbo Stampede Running Festival	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
6 Sep	RunningWorks 3 Valleys Marathon	WA	Marathon, Half, 10km	Trail
11-13 Sep	Hounslow Classic	NSW	42km, 22km, 12km	Trail
13 Sep	Horsham Running Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
19-20 Sep	Warrnambool Running Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
20 Sep	Geelong Running Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
20 Sep	Ross Running Festival	TAS	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
20 Sep	Sunset Coast Marathon and Run Festival	WA	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
26-27 Sep	Lamington Classic Trail Run	QLD	50km, 25km, 12km	Trail Ultra
3-4 Oct	SA Track Ultra	SA	100km, 50km, 12hr, 6hr	Track Ultra
4 Oct	Coastal Pathway Ultra	TAS	Ultra, Half	Trail Ultra
11 Oct	Nike Melbourne Marathon Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km, 3km	Road
11 Oct	Perth Running Festival	WA	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
24-25 Oct	Heysen Trail Ultra Marathon	SA	Multi-stage ultra	Trail Ultra
25 Oct	Mansfield Marathon	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
31 Oct	Run Huskisson	NSW	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
31 Oct-1 Nov	Blue Goat's Backyard Marathon	NSW	Backyard ultra format	Backyard Ultra
7-8 Nov	Marysville Marathon Festival	VIC	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road
14 Nov	Stromlo Running Festival	ACT	Marathon, Half, 10km, 5km	Road / Trail

Dates are based on confirmed 2026 listings. Always check the event website for the latest details and entry status before registering.

---

Understanding the Race Formats

Before the listings, it helps to understand what you are signing up for. Australian race events span a wide range of formats.

Road marathons and half marathons are the most popular. They run on sealed roads, usually through city centres or along coastlines. Courses are measured and certified, which means your time counts toward personal bests and world rankings. Events like the TCS Sydney Marathon and Gold Coast Marathon sit in this category.

Trail runs take you off-road, through national parks, along cliff tops, and into state forests. Distances are similar to road races but the terrain demands more from your legs, your ankles, and your focus. Technical descents, river crossings, and exposed ridgelines are part of the experience. If you are new to trail running, it is worth reading our guide to the best sunglasses for trail running in Australia before race day. Events like Ultra-Trail Australia in the Blue Mountains and the Surf Coast Trail Marathon in Victoria are considered among the best trail events in the country. On trail courses, you move constantly between open exposed ridgelines and shaded forest, which is where a photochromic lens earns its place over a fixed tint.

Running festivals offer multiple distances under one event banner. A typical festival might include a 42.2km marathon, a 21.1km half marathon, a 10km, and a 5km fun run. They are family friendly, well-supported, and a good option if you are travelling with people at different fitness levels.

Ultramarathons are anything beyond the standard marathon distance. Hours on course across changing light conditions makes lens choice more important than most runners expect. Our Infinity lens was built with exactly this in mind: photochromic, polarised, anti-fog, and UV400 in one lens that adjusts as conditions shift. Common ultra distances in Australia are 50km, 60km, 100km, and 100 miles. Some ultras run for a fixed time (24 hours, 48 hours) rather than a fixed distance. Backyard ultras are a specific format where runners complete a fixed loop every hour until only one remains. They are gaining popularity across Australia and require a very different mental approach to traditional racing.

Multi-day marathons like the Bravehearts 777 ask participants to run a marathon in seven cities across seven days. These events are about the journey and the cause as much as the running.

---

New South Wales

NSW carries the biggest race on the Australian calendar. The TCS Sydney Marathon on 30 August 2026 is a World Marathon Major, putting it alongside Boston, London, Tokyo, Chicago, and New York. Around 40,000 runners from over 100 countries start at Milsons Point and finish in the CBD. It is the flagship event of the Australian season.

Earlier in the year, the Run Shellharbour (17 May) and Bayside Run Festival (24 May) offer smaller, coastal marathon and half marathon options south of Sydney.

The Coffs Harbour Running Festival (30 August) and Beach to Brother in Port Macquarie (6 September) are popular mid-year escapes for runners who want to travel for a race. Both offer full and half marathon distances in scenic coastal settings.

For trail runners, the Hounslow Classic (11-13 September) in Blackheath is a Blue Mountains cult classic. The Bay to Bay Running Festival (14 June, Gosford) follows Central Coast waterways. The Kowen Winter Trails (21 June, Wamboin) head into pine forests just outside Canberra.

If you want something truly different, the Mad Max Marathon Festival in Broken Hill (26 July) covers the Outback landscape of the far west. The Dubbo Stampede Running Festival (6 September) runs through the grounds of Taronga Western Plains Zoo.

Ultra runners should note the Southern Sydney Track Ultra (4-5 July, Campbelltown) for a track-format ultra, and the Rumble in the Jungle (1 August, Ulong) for something more adventurous in the Coffs hinterland.

---

Victoria

Victoria's marquee event is the Nike Melbourne Marathon Festival on 11 October 2026. Runners loop around Albert Park Lake, pass the St Kilda Foreshore, and cross the finish line at the MCG. Entries sell out fast, sometimes within hours of opening.

Earlier in the year, the Great Ocean Road Running Festival (16-17 May, Apollo Bay) is one of the most scenic events in the country. The course traces the coastline with ocean views on one side and the Otway Ranges on the other. Multiple distances run across the weekend.

Trail running in Victoria is exceptional. The Surf Coast Trail Marathon (20 June, Torquay to Fairhaven) follows the Great Ocean Walk along coastal cliffs and beaches. The You Yangs Trail Running Festival (18-19 July) uses the granite ridgelines of the You Yangs Regional Park south-west of Melbourne. The Surf Coast Wonderfalls Trail Run (15 August) drops into the rainforest gullies of the Great Otway National Park near Lorne.

For road options throughout the winter and spring, look at the Mildura Riverfront Marathon Festival (7 June), Shepparton Running Festival (15-16 August), Horsham Running Festival (13 September), Warrnambool Running Festival (19-20 September), Geelong Running Festival (20 September), and Mansfield Marathon (25 October).

The Berry Long Run (8 August, Lerderderg State Park) and the Sri Chinmoy Princes Park Winter Running Festival (9 August, Carlton) are popular mid-season events for Melbourne-based runners looking for a warm-up before the marathon season peaks in October. Worth noting: UV remains high through Australian winter, particularly on clear July and August days.

---

Queensland

Queensland punches above its weight on the race calendar. The Gold Coast Marathon (4-5 July 2026) is Australia's most popular marathon and consistently one of the fastest courses in the world. Around 60 percent of runners set a personal best on its flat, sea-level roads. Entries sold out on the day of opening in 2026, so keep an eye on the 2027 ballot early.

The ASICS Runaway Noosa Marathon (23 May) is a beloved Queensland event, run through the national park and along the Noosa River. It sells out every year and the atmosphere rivals events twice its size.

The Brisbane Marathon Festival (7 June, City Botanic Gardens) is the capital city option, now well established as a quality urban marathon. The Sunshine Coast Marathon Festival (2 August, Alexandra Headlands) and McDonald's Townsville Running Festival (2 August) give Queensland runners two strong options in the same weekend.

For unique Queensland experiences, the 7Cairns Marathon Festival (12 July, Fogarty Park) and the 3 Marathons in 3 Days event (9-11 July, Kuranda) are both set in the tropical north near Cairns. The Airlie Beach Marathon Festival (18-19 July) runs through the Whitsundays. The Australian Outback Marathon near Uluru crosses the NT border into outback country that most runners never see at race pace.

Trail runners should look at the Scenic Rim Ultra (8 August, Coulson) and the Lamington Classic Trail Run (26-27 September) in Lamington National Park for technical rainforest terrain.

---

Western Australia

WA is underrated as a running destination. The Perth Running Festival (11 October, Burswood) is the main event and offers full marathon, half marathon, and shorter distances. Conditions in October are ideal, with warm but manageable spring weather.

The Rottnest Running Festival (14 June) is genuinely unique. Rottnest Island has no cars, no hills over 50 metres, and some of the clearest coastal light you will find anywhere. Running it is a different experience to any mainland event.

The Goldfields Pipeline Marathon (19 July, Kalgoorlie) follows the historic pipeline route across the goldfields. The Broome International Airport Marathon (5 July, Cable Beach) runs along one of Australia's most famous beaches. Both give WA runners a reason to travel and explore the state.

For trail and ultra runners, Transcend Trails (22 August, Walyunga National Park) covers rugged jarrah forest terrain east of Perth. The Sunset Coast Marathon and Run Festival (20 September, Mullaloo Beach) finishes along the Indian Ocean coastline.

The Bibra Lake RunningWorks Festival (5 July) and Beachside RunningWorks Festival (20 September, Port Kennedy) are both well-organised local events with good community atmosphere.

---

South Australia

South Australia has two events that should be on every Australian runner's list at least once.

The Pichi Richi Marathon (28 June, Port Augusta to Quorn) runs through the Flinders Ranges along the route of the historic Pichi Richi railway. It is a point-to-point road marathon through genuinely beautiful outback country. The Great Kanku-Breakaways Bolt (7 June, Coober Pedy) takes runners through the lunar-like landscape of the Kanku-Breakaways Conservation Park in the far north. Neither event is a PB course. Both are unforgettable.

The Barossa Marathon Festival (23 August, Tanunda) runs through the vines and heritage towns of the Barossa Valley. The Kangaroo Island Marathon (23 August, Flinders Chase National Park) covers the wild western end of Kangaroo Island.

Ultra runners should note the Heysen Trail Ultra Marathon (24-25 October) which covers a serious multi-stage distance along the iconic Heysen Trail, finishing at Victor Harbor.

---

Tasmania

Tasmania's events are small but memorable. The Ross Running Festival (20 September) runs through the heritage-listed village of Ross, one of the best preserved colonial towns in Australia. The Flinders Island Running Festival (4-6 September) is held on a remote island in the Bass Strait and requires a flight to get there. It regularly sells out among runners who want something genuinely off the beaten path.

The Coastal Pathway Ultra (4 October, Latrobe) follows river and coastal terrain through the north-west of the state.

---

ACT and Northern Territory

The Stromlo Running Festival (14 November, Stromlo Forest Park) is the main Canberra event, run on fast cross-country style trails through the pine forest park west of the city. The Kowen Winter Trails (21 June, Wamboin) are also within striking distance of Canberra.

In the Northern Territory, the Alice Springs Running Festival (19 July) is held in the desert at the geographic heart of Australia. The Australian Outback Marathon (25 July, Yulara) runs in the shadow of Uluru and is consistently rated as one of the most visually extraordinary race experiences anywhere in the world. Winter conditions in both Alice Springs and Uluru are surprisingly mild and make for good running weather, but the sun is intense from the moment it rises. Protecting your eyes matters more out there than almost anywhere else on the calendar. A photochromic lens that adapts as the sun climbs is particularly useful for outback events where conditions shift fast between the start line and the finish. The Adaptor goes near-clear in the pre-dawn chill and darkens as the sun rises, without you thinking about it.

---

What to Think About Before You Register

Entry timing is the biggest issue for popular events. The Gold Coast Marathon, Melbourne Marathon, and Sydney Marathon all have waitlists or ballots. Sign up for event newsletters and set calendar reminders for when registrations open.

Trail events typically require mandatory gear, including hydration packs, emergency blankets, and headlamps even for daytime events. Check the specific list for each event before race day.

Conditions vary significantly across the calendar. The July-August events in Queensland and the NT are run in dry, sunny weather. NSW and VIC spring events in September and October can be warm by mid-morning. For outdoor events where you are exposed to direct light for several hours, eyewear that adapts to changing conditions matters, especially on coastal and outback courses where there is no shade and the glare comes from multiple directions.

Most events have pace requirements and course cutoffs. Check these carefully if you are entering a first marathon or coming back from injury. If you are undecided on eyewear for race day, our piece on whether to wear sunglasses for a marathon covers what actually makes a difference on course.

---

The Full Calendar at a Glance

The complete 2026-2027 Australian running calendar is updated continuously at runcalendar.com.au and runningcalendar.com.au. Both sites allow you to filter by state, distance, and date, and most events link directly to registration pages.

Whatever you end up entering, the hardest part is committing to the race. Once that is done, the training takes care of itself. Good luck with the block.