Final week, 1000’s of runners had been left annoyed after spending money and time to participate within the 2025 Sanlam Cape City Marathon—just for the race to be cancelled simply 75 minutes earlier than the beginning as a consequence of harmful winds.
In response to the cancellation, race organizers stated all registered members will obtain a complimentary entry to both the 2026 or 2027 version, funded by title sponsor Sanlam. As well as, those that run the 2026 race will obtain a provisional Abbott World Marathon Majors (AWMM) star, ought to the Cape City Marathon formally be part of the sequence as its eighth occasion.
“The title sponsor, Sanlam, is providing to fund entry charges for 2026 or 2027 to these affected by this 12 months’s cancellation,” organizers stated in a social media publish. “Contributors within the 2026 race will even obtain credit score for a World Marathon Main star if the occasion is formally added to the sequence after its subsequent analysis.”
So, for those who run the race in 2026, and it’s later accepted into the AbbottWMM sequence, you’ll retroactively obtain a star for it. At present, the seven official World Marathon Majors are New York, Boston, Chicago, London, Berlin, Tokyo, and Sydney (lately). The Cape City Marathon has been underneath analysis by AWMM since 2022.
The choice to cancel the 2025 race was made after wind gusts between 48 and 60 km/h made the course unsafe. “The climate wasn’t simply unhealthy, it was harmful,” organizers wrote on social media. “Fences and tents had been lifted, and key constructions couldn’t be licensed protected. The protection of our members comes first. At all times.”
On the time of the cancellation, most of the 24,000 registered runners had been already firstly line or en path to it when the emergency notification got here by means of at 4:45 a.m.
Organizers have additionally introduced a serious scheduling change coming in 2026 to forestall this from taking place once more. The Cape City Marathon will formally shift from October to Might to keep away from the seasonal winds and cut back congestion with different main races.
Runners shattered after last-minute marathon cancellation in South Africa
