Sanlam Cape Town Marathon becoming an Abbott World Marathon Major – what you need to know

Running never stops and the next question on every runner’s lips is: will the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon become the 8th Abbott World Marathon Major? Following the incredible success of the 2025 TCS Sydney Marathon presented by ASICS, the Abbott World Marathon Major series looks set to take on a further expansion in 2026, welcoming the continent of Africa to the series for the first time.

With the 2025 edition of the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon taking place on 19 October, it’s a tight turnaround for the 2026 edition, with the 2026 race taking place on 24 May. Here is everything you need to know about the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon and its journey to becoming the eighth Abbott World Marathon Major…

Will the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon become an Abbott World Marathon Major?

We don’t know for certain, but the chances are looking very good. The 2026 event has already been announced as the location for the 2026 Abbott World Marathon Majors Marathon Tours & Travel Age Group World Championships. This means that on 24 May, the race will welcome the fastest runners aged over 40 years old from around the world to race through the streets of Cape Town (to book your AGWC package, click here).

What’s more, the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon is on its third and final year of the candidacy process set out by the Abbott World Marathon Majors. Although it has taken four years for this process to take place, the signs are looking good for a 2026 addition to the roster.

What makes the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon such a great race?

The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon is Africa’s only AIMS Gold Label Marathon and offers an exciting, beautiful and spacious course for you to run along. Mixing both urban vibrancy and stunning rural views, this course showcases everything Cape Town has to offer. You’ll run through city streets packed with loud, passionate and caring supporters and then out to coastal, mountainous views that will figuratively and literally take your breath away! There aren’t many more beautiful marathon courses in the world.

Even better, there is great excitement behind the event, which is a fantastic celebration of the cultural diversity of South Africa. Cape Town, known as the ‘Mother City’ has a long and well-documented history and really speaks for itself. There is plenty to see and do during your stay with lots of internationally acclaimed restaurants, shops and attractions to visit.

What will change when Cape Town becomes a Major?

Scale, for a start. We saw with the 2025 edition of the TCS Sydney Marathon presented by ASICS that the number of runners increased to 35,000 and the crowds, atmosphere and hype around the event increased substantially. Expect exactly the same in Cape Town, but with that extra African energy.

The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon 2025 sold out its 24,000 entries, and if it is confirmed as a Abbott World Marathon Major, we expect the field to be even bigger in 2026. With the addition of the Age Group World Championships, the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon 2026 promises to be a celebration of marathons and an exciting festival of running throughout.

It is also confirmed that the 2026 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon will include a lottery system for race entry, reflecting its potential new status as an Abbott World Marathon Major. However, you can secure your place without the stress of the lottery by booking through our official travel package, which guarantees your entry, here.

What will happen to the six-star medal when Cape Town becomes a Major?

In much the same way as we saw with the TCS Sydney Marathon, the Six Star Medal will remain exclusive to the original six Abbott World Marathon Majors: Tokyo Marathon, Boston Marathon® presented by Bank of America, TCS London Marathon, BMW BERLIN-MARATHON, Bank of America Chicago Marathon and TCS New York City Marathon. Even as new races like the TCS Sydney Marathon – and potentially Sanlam Cape Town Marathon and Shanghai Marathon – join the Majors, the Six Star Medal will not change.

The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon and Shanghai Marathon are currently undergoing evaluation, and both must pass to trigger the introduction of a new milestone: the Nine Star Medal, which will be awarded to runners who complete all nine Majors. So while Cape Town won’t count towards your Six Star achievement, it could become part of a new goal for runners looking to go beyond.

Abbott World Marathon Majors have introduced a range of collectible medals, coins and displays to help everyone in the AbbottWMM community celebrate their journey. Find out more here.

Will there be any further additions to the Majors after Cape Town?

That certainly looks to be the case. The Shanghai Marathon will take place this November and the 2025 edition will mark ‘year two’ of their candidacy process. Should they pass that, they will move on to the third and final year of the candidacy process. This means that in 2027, the Shanghai Marathon could become the NINTH World Marathon Major. It would be the second Marathon Major in Asia and the first in China. Good luck to them!

To pre-register for our 2026 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon packages with entries, click here.

To learn more about the Abbott World Marathon Majors, click here.