The Brighton Marathon takes place today, Sunday 12 April 2026, with up to 20,000 participants expected across the full marathon, the Brighton & Hove 10K and the Brighton Miles. The 26.2-mile course starts at Preston Park and finishes on Brighton’s seafront at Hove Lawns — making it one of the most scenic finish lines in British running. Conditions this morning are brisk at around 9°C with a strong westerly wind off the sea, which will test runners on the coastal stretch.
What It Means for the City Today
For residents, today is as much about the city as the race itself. Road closures are in effect across central Brighton and Hove throughout the morning, with large crowds expected along the seafront from mid-morning as the bulk of the field comes through. Runners who finish receive access to the Beach Village Club at Hove Lawns, and a number of local restaurants and bars along the route are offering post-race deals to anyone presenting their finisher’s medal — a Brighton tradition that makes the city one of the friendlier marathon hosts on the UK calendar.
The Brighton Marathon is the UK’s third-largest marathon, behind only London, and it has built a reputation over its sixteen years that goes well beyond the race itself. Founded in 2010 and now operated by London Marathon Events, it has grown into a full weekend event that genuinely takes over the city — the kind of occasion where spectators line the streets as enthusiastically as the runners pound them.
This year’s field is among the largest the event has seen. The flat, road course with just 477 feet of elevation gain makes Brighton one of the better options for runners chasing personal bests, and the seafront finish on Madeira Drive remains one of the most celebrated in domestic marathon running. Last year’s men’s race was won by Sam Cook of Horsham in 2:26:47, setting the benchmark the elite field will be targeting today.
The weekend began yesterday with the Brighton & Hove 10K and the Brighton Miles, warming the city up for today’s main event. By the time the last finishers cross the line — the cut-off is seven hours — the seafront will have been transformed for the better part of a day into something that feels genuinely communal, which is what Brighton does best.
Results will be published at the official Brighton Marathon results page as they come in this afternoon.
