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Almaty Marathon

September 27, 2026 · 7:00 AMAlmaty, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan

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Race snapshot

Race Day

59°F

39–63°F · Feels cool

Total elevation gain

1,312ft

Challenging elevation · Net elevation change +0 ft

Participants

17K

Major marathon

Crowd Rating

8/ 10

Excellent spectator turnout

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The Lowdown

The Almaty Marathon is Central Asia's largest running event, held annually since 2012 at the foot of the picturesque Zailiyskiy Alatau mountains. The course starts and finishes at Republic Square on Satpayev Street and loops through the main streets of Almaty, offering stunning mountain views along with long climbs and steep descents; the full marathon covers the half-marathon loop twice. The event is AIMS-certified (member since 2013) with tracks certified to World Athletics standards, and is part of the TAN Series (Turkic Alliance of long-distance races). A record 17,000 participants took part across all distances in 2019. Charity is central to the event's mission: a portion of entry fees funds projects supporting children with special needs, with more than 30 charitable projects completed in Almaty, Shymkent, and the Almaty and Turkistan regions.

2025 · Marathon

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Minimum Age: 18 years
Entry Methods: Online registration via almaty-marathon.kz
Eligibility: Marathon (42.2 km): minimum age 18
Half Marathon (21.1 km): minimum age 18
10K: ages 15-17 and 18+
Nordic Walking 10K: minimum age 15
Ekiden relay: minimum age 15, at least one female team member mandatory
Required Documents: Photo ID
Health acknowledgement form (official PDF)
Health status declaration for under-18 participants, where applicable
Cancellation & Refund Policy: Review the official public offer / contract terms on almaty-marathon.kz before registering. No specific refund policy is published on the event page.

01: Founded in 2012 as the charity 'Courage to be the First' marathon with 2,500 participants; now organized by the Courage to be the First Corporate Fund, founded by businessman Galimzhan Yessenov.
02: Member of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) since 2013; course certified to World Athletics standards since 2018.
03: Part of the TAN Series, the first international running series of the Turkic peoples.
04: Budget roughly $70 a night for a 3-star hotel in Almaty during race week.
05: Central Asia's largest running event, with strong spectator support along the course.
06: Typical late-September race-day temperatures range from 8-22C (46-72F).
07: Net elevation gain is treated as 0 since the course is a there-and-back/loop route without a stated net change. Total elevation gain is roughly 400m for the marathon (two loops of the roughly 200m half-marathon course), based on third-party course descriptions rather than the official site.
08: This course is not known to be a Boston Marathon qualifier.

Prepare for This Race

Pace CalculatorPlan splits for marathon Race PredictorPredict your marathon time BQ CalculatorBQ-eligible course Fuel PlannerPlan nutrition for marathon, cool weather Difficulty Analyzer1312ft gain, 59°F avg, marathon Training PacesTraining zones for marathon

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