Newport, Wales, United Kingdom · 42.195 km road marathon
Newport Wales Marathon 2027
Sunday 18 April 2027
A flat single loop from Newport's riverfront out onto the Gwent Levels and back, billed as one of Europe's flattest marathons, with a six-hour limit and race packs sent by post.
Newport Wales Marathon at a glance
- Start
- 09:00, marathon and half together from pens; Usk Way by the University of South Wales
- Finish
- Usk Way, city side, beside the start and the Event Village
- Course
- One loop with about 22 m of climbing in total, measured by an AUKCM Grade 1 course measurer
- Time limit
- Six hours, basis not stated; roads then reopen and a sweep bus follows
- Cut-offs
- None published
- Entry
- Open: GBP 59 general, GBP 57 club-affiliated, plus booking fee; closes 21 March 2027 or when full
- Bib pickup
- Posted about a week before; overseas entrants collect on race morning at the Event Information tent
- Getting to the start
- Park & Ride GBP 13 a car, booked ahead; runners were told to arrive by 07:30 (2026)
- Aid stations
- Ten water stations 3 to 5.5 km apart in 2026; gels near km 9 and 27
Checked against the organizer's pages on 24 September 2026. Facts for the next edition can still change; the organizer's page is the final word.
Newport Wales Marathon course map and elevation
One loop with about 22 m of climbing in total, measured by an AUKCM Grade 1 course measurer. Map, elevation profile and 3D flyover.
› running direction two lines: out and back on the same road race kilometresCourse: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Route drawn by TrailSplits from published race information; approximate. For illustration, not navigation.
What to expect on the course
- A city-centre opening lap of about 2 km, up High Street past the Victorian Market towards the Castle and back past the start
- The City Bridge over the Usk near km 3.5, then a lap of the Newport Stadium track in the Sports Village around km 4 to 6
- North Row across the Levels to a turnaround at Redwick near km 15.5
- Two laps of about 10 km by Whitson, Goldcliff and the Newport Wetlands, past the entertainment zone each time
- Home by Traston Road and Corporation Road with the Transporter Bridge in view, over the City Bridge near km 40.7 to Usk Way
The map follows the route run in 2025 and 2026, out to Redwick and twice round the Goldcliff wetlands; the organizer has not yet confirmed the 2027 route. Two short stretches are drawn on nearby streets because the map has no path there: the pedestrianised High Street in the opening city lap and the lap of the stadium track near km 5.
Read the full course description
A single loop from Usk Way on Newport's riverfront out onto the Gwent Levels and back, measured by an AUKCM Grade 1 and AIMS Grade B course measurer. It opens with a city-centre lap of about 2 km: north on Usk Way, west on Skinner Street, up High Street past the Victorian Market towards the Castle, then south on Usk Way past the start. The course crosses the Usk on the City Bridge near km 3.5 and circles the International Sports Village around km 4 to 6, including a lap of the Newport Stadium track. Nash Road and Broad Street Common lead to North Row and a turnaround at Redwick near km 15.5. Back west, runners go twice round a loop of about 10 km by Whitson, Goldcliff and the Newport Wetlands, passing the entertainment zone on each lap, then return by Nash Road, Traston Road and Corporation Road with the Transporter Bridge in view, recross the City Bridge near km 40.7 and finish on Usk Way. The organizer calls it one of the flattest marathon courses in Europe, and its embedded route shows about 22 m of climbing, all between roughly 5 m and 18 m above sea level. In 2026 ten water stations sat 3 to 5.5 km apart; pacers run from 3:00 to 4:30.
Source, licence and file
TrailSplits reconstruction of the published route. Course: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL · original source · Download reference GPX (42.7 km in the file). Approximate terrain-model heights added by TrailSplits, sampled and smoothed at roughly 100 m intervals. Buildings, bridges and small road gradients are not surveyed road elevations.Produced using Copernicus WorldDEM-30 © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved.
Three decisions to make before race day
Plan race morning around a posted pack
Packs usually arrive a week before, possibly the day before; overseas entrants collect on race morning at the Event Information tent, open from 07:00 for the 09:00 start, where missing packs are also replaced.
More detail
Packs usually arrive a week before but can come the day before, and overseas entrants get nothing by post: they collect on race morning at the Event Information tent, open from 07:00 for the 09:00 start. A missing pack is replaced there against your name, booking ID and date of birth. In 2026 booked Park & Ride cost GBP 13 a car and runners were told to arrive by 07:30.
Fix your predicted time before the March deadline
Your predicted time sets your pen and can be changed until the March deadline (16 March in 2026). Marathon and half share the 09:00 pens, so you may start behind faster half runners; you can drop back, not forward.
More detail
Your pen comes from the predicted time on your booking, editable on Let's Do This until the transfer deadline (16 March at 16:00 in 2026; 2027 not yet set). Marathon and half runners share the 09:00 start and pens, so a marathoner may be placed behind faster half runners. On the day you may drop back a pen but not move forward; pens open 15 minutes before the start.
Carry your own fuel for the second half
In 2026 gels came only near km 9 and 27 and energy drink near km 13 and 32, with water only after that. Carry products you have practised with for the last 10 km.
More detail
The 2026 plan had gels only at miles 5.5 and 16.5, about km 9 and 27, and energy drink at miles 7.9 and 19.8, about km 13 and 32; after that the stations near km 35 and 38 offered water only. The organizer advises carrying products you have practised with if HIGH5 gels or Powerade do not suit you, so plan the last 10 km on what you carry.
Your race-day sheet
Even elapsed splits for 42.195 km. All clocks are local to Newport.
ESTIMATED FINISH
13:00:00
MOVING PACE BUDGET
5:34/ km
ELAPSED PACE
5:41/ km
120 min below the modelled finish limit
| Distance | Elapsed | Local clock |
|---|---|---|
| 5 km | 00:28:26 | 09:28:26 |
| 10 km | 00:56:53 | 09:56:53 |
| 15 km | 01:25:19 | 10:25:19 |
| 20 km | 01:53:45 | 10:53:45 |
| Halfway | 02:00:00 | 11:00:00 |
| 25 km | 02:22:12 | 11:22:12 |
| 30 km | 02:50:38 | 11:50:38 |
| 35 km | 03:19:05 | 12:19:05 |
| 40 km | 03:47:31 | 12:47:31 |
| Finish | 04:00:00 | 13:00:00 |
Training plan for Newport Wales Marathon 2027
A free week-by-week plan dated to this race. It starts from a stated default (weekly distance, longest recent run, days a week) that you can change; nothing is read from your watch or training history. It does not use the finish-time target above.
View my training planNo account required. Keep a fixed copy, download the calendar or get a subscription URL for Google or Apple Calendar.
Entry, bib pickup and rules
- Entry:
- Open: GBP 59 general, GBP 57 club-affiliated, plus booking fee; closes 21 March 2027 or when full
- Bib pickup:
- Posted about a week before; overseas entrants collect on race morning at the Event Information tent
Read the full entry and pickup rules
Entry for 2027 is open directly through Let's Do This, and there is no waiting list. The launch and early-bird marathon tiers have sold out; general entry is GBP 59, or GBP 57 for UK Athletics affiliated club runners, plus a booking fee, and closes at midnight on 21 March 2027 or earlier if places run out. Runners must be 18 on race day. Refunds apply only within 14 days of booking and there are no deferrals, but a place can be gifted through Let's Do This until the March transfer deadline (16 March at 16:00 in 2026; the 2027 date is still to come). Race packs with the chip bib are posted, usually about a week before; overseas entrants collect theirs on race morning at the Event Information tent.
Sources
Checked 24 September 2026; next review due 2026-11-02. Event facts come from the organizer; the pacing sheet, decisions and plan are TrailSplits' own. Independently prepared by TrailSplits, not endorsed by the organizer.
What each source confirms
- 2027 marathon entry page: The Sunday 18 April 2027 date, the sold-out launch and early-bird tiers, the GBP 59 general and GBP 57 affiliated prices with the Let's Do This booking fee, the 21 March 2027 closing date, the minimum age of 18, the six-hour cut-off over 26.2 miles, the gifting service until the transfer deadline and the rule that packs cannot be collected outside the set time slots.
- Event FAQ: The 18 April 2027 date with the 09:00 marathon start, start and finish on the city side of Usk Way between Lidl and the University of South Wales, Event Information from 07:00, pens opening 15 minutes before, the six-hour cut-off with reopening roads and a sweep bus, posted packs and race-morning collection for overseas entrants, the 14-day refund window, no deferral and no waiting list, pen allocation by predicted time with shared marathon and half pens, and the 3:00 to 4:30 pacers. Transfer and pen deadlines on this page are still the 2026 dates.
- Marathon route page: The route description (city-centre lap by Skinner Street, High Street, the Market and the Castle, the Sports Village with a track lap, the Redwick turnaround, the second wetlands lap past the entertainment zone and the Transporter Bridge before the finish), the AUKCM Grade 1 and AIMS Grade B measurement, the flat-course claim, the 2025 route map and the embedded route with its 73 ft of gain that the map line follows.
- 2026 hydration page and race-day information: The 2026 marathon station mileages (water at 1.09, 3.5, 5.5, 7.9, 10.8, 14.2, 16.5, 19.8, 21.9 and 23.7 miles, gels at 5.5 and 16.5, Powerade at 7.9 and 19.8) and the advice to carry tested products. The 2026 race-day page at /race-day-guide/ (with its race-pack leaflet map, which shows the same route as 2025) and /parking/ support the 07:30 arrival advice, the booked GBP 13 Park & Ride, and bag drop at Friars Walk; all 2026 facts.