Daegu Marathon

The Daegu Marathon is South Korea's flagship road race and, as of the 2026 edition, the country's only World Athletics Gold Label marathon, a status it has held for four consecutive years since first being promoted from Silver Label in 2023. Organized by Daegu Metropolitan City together with the Korea Association of Athletics Federations and the Daegu Sports Council, the race starts and finishes at Daegu Stadium and sends runners through a circular course across the city's downtown, showcasing local landmarks along a route nicknamed the 'Heartbreaker Course' for a demanding late-race climb; recent editions have reduced elevation changes after the 35 km mark to help elite runners chase faster times. The 2026 race, held February 22, drew roughly 41,000 participants from 34 countries across the Full Marathon, 10 km, and Healthy Run categories, with an elite field of about 150 athletes from 15 countries competing for a prize purse raised to $200,000; Tanzania's Gabriel Gerald Gai defended his title in 2:08:09 and Kenya's Lillian Kasaite Renjerok won the women's race in 2:19:33. The next edition is scheduled for February 28, 2027, though general registration for it has not yet opened; in recent years registration has opened in mid-September and closed by the end of December, or earlier if the roughly 40,000-entry field fills first. Entry fees in the most recent (2026) cycle were 80,000 KRW for the Full Marathon, 50,000 KRW for the 10 km, and 30,000 KRW for the Healthy Run. Daegu's late-February race day typically brings cool, dry winter conditions well suited to fast marathon times, and the flat, fully paved downtown course keeps the race accessible to a wide range of finishers, from record-chasing elites to first-time marathoners drawn by the festival atmosphere around Daegu Stadium.