Mahamed Mahamed Cheers 10,000 at Southampton Marathon 2026
More than 10,000 runners will start southampton marathon 2026 from a new Dock Gate 8 line at 09:00 on Sunday. The 26.2-mile race finishes in Guildhall Square, and the start comes with a Spitfire flypast expected near the line at about 08:30.
The route will send runners through the Bargate, The Common and Itchen Bridge before they reach the finish. For anyone moving around the city that morning, the biggest change is the scale of the closures: large parts of Southampton city centre, plus the docks Town Quay area, Bitterne, Portswood and Woolston, are all in the plan.
Dock Gate 8 and Guildhall Square
The marathon, half marathon, 10K and 5K all begin from Dock Gate 8 at the City Cruise Terminal. The full marathon covers 26.2 miles, while the shorter races give the event four separate starts under the same setup. That concentration at one launch point means the morning builds quickly, with runners, spectators and event staff funnelling toward the docks before 09:00.
Mahamed Mahamed will be at the start podium and the finish line to cheer runners on. He arrives with fresh form behind him after finishing as the first British runner in Sunday's London Marathon, where he placed tenth overall in two hours six minutes 14 seconds.
Road Closures Across Southampton
The clearest pressure point is transport. Above Bar Street and surrounding roads beside the ABP Southampton Marathon Festival will close from Friday to Sunday, and the Itchen Bridge shuts from 08:00 until 14:00 on Sunday. That six-hour closure sits inside a wider network of temporary restrictions across the city centre and the listed districts.
The finish area also carries its own schedule. The Mile Fun Run will be held at the finish gantry on Above Bar Street, while the main races end in Guildhall Square. Last year, the marathon marked its 10th anniversary, with Dan Gaffney first across the line in just over two hours and 35 minutes and Jenny Badger winning the women's race in two hours and 58 minutes. This year, runners in the 5K and 10K have a two-hour cut-off, the half marathon has three hours and the full marathon has six hours.
For anyone planning to travel through central Southampton on Sunday morning, the practical move is simple: avoid the bridge window, treat Dock Gate 8 as race space before 09:00, and expect the routes around Town Quay, Bitterne, Portswood and Woolston to be tied up until the event clears.
