Sanlam Cape Town Marathon – Course Map and Elevation Profile
| Distance | 42.195 km |
|---|---|
| Route elevation | 194 m up · 200 m down |
| Highest point | 38 m · 31.6 km |
| Lowest point | 2 m · 24.7 km |
| Steepest climb | +6.0 % · 30.3 km |
| Steepest descent | −3.7 % · 33.4 km |
| Net elevation change | −6 m |
| Course type | Loop |
| Course record men | 2:04:55 · Huseyidin Mohamed Esa · 24 May 2026 |
| Course record women | no verified figure |
194 metres up and 200 down: 4 climbs, several of them long enough to break a rhythm.
Course
Kapstadt in numbers
- Distance
- 42.195km
- Ascent
- 194m
- Descent
- 200m
- Low / high
- 2 / 38m
- Flat-equivalent
- +0.97 %
- Steepest 50 m
- +6.0 %
Pace Planner
bergauf flach bergabWaagerecht: Distanz. Streifen unter dem Profil: mittlere Steigung je 500 m. Gestrichelte Linien sind Orientierungspunkte.
- Position
- 0.00 km
- Elevation
- 10 m
- Gradient
- −0.4 %
- Pace here
- 4:54 /km
- Elapsed
- 0:00
- Remaining
- 3:30:00
- Landmark
- —
Pacing table
| km | Point | Elevation | Gradient | up / down | Target pace | total | adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 m → 10 m | −0.06 % | +1 m / −2 m | 4:54 | 4:54 | 4:54 | |
| 2 | 10 m → 16 m | +0.65 % | +7 m / −0 m | 5:04 | 9:59 | 4:54 | |
| 3 | 16 m → 18 m | +0.12 % | +3 m / −2 m | 4:58 | 14:57 | 4:54 | |
| 4 | 18 m → 9 m | −0.88 % | +4 m / −13 m | 4:53 | 19:50 | 4:54 | |
| 5 | 9 m → 6 m | −0.28 % | +2 m / −5 m | 4:54 | 24:44 | 4:54 | |
| 6 | 6 m → 19 m | +1.31 % | +14 m / −1 m | 5:16 | 30:00 | 4:54 | |
| 7 | 19 m → 18 m | −0.15 % | +13 m / −15 m | 5:08 | 35:08 | 4:54 | |
| 8 | 18 m → 19 m | +0.17 % | +7 m / −5 m | 5:02 | 40:10 | 4:54 | |
| 9 | 19 m → 31 m | +1.20 % | +12 m / −0 m | 5:14 | 45:24 | 4:54 | |
| 10 | 31 m → 31 m | −0.02 % | +4 m / −4 m | 4:58 | 50:22 | 4:54 | |
| 11 | 31 m → 26 m | −0.53 % | +3 m / −8 m | 4:54 | 55:15 | 4:54 | |
| 12 | 26 m → 16 m | −0.94 % | +0 m / −9 m | 4:48 | 1:00:04 | 4:54 | |
| 13 | 16 m → 25 m | +0.91 % | +9 m / −0 m | 5:09 | 1:05:12 | 4:54 | |
| 14 | 25 m → 31 m | +0.52 % | +5 m / −0 m | 5:02 | 1:10:15 | 4:54 | |
| 15 | 31 m → 32 m | +0.10 % | +2 m / −1 m | 4:56 | 1:15:11 | 4:54 | |
| 16 | 32 m → 30 m | −0.17 % | +2 m / −4 m | 4:55 | 1:20:06 | 4:54 | |
| 17 | 30 m → 25 m | −0.49 % | +1 m / −6 m | 4:52 | 1:24:58 | 4:54 | |
| 18 | 25 m → 15 m | −0.96 % | +2 m / −11 m | 4:50 | 1:29:48 | 4:54 | |
| 19 | 15 m → 22 m | +0.67 % | +9 m / −2 m | 5:07 | 1:34:55 | 4:54 | |
| 20 | 22 m → 21 m | −0.13 % | +7 m / −9 m | 5:01 | 1:39:56 | 4:54 | |
| 21 | 21 m → 20 m | −0.08 % | +2 m / −3 m | 4:55 | 1:44:51 | 4:54 | |
| 22 | 20 m → 25 m | +0.50 % | +5 m / −0 m | 5:02 | 1:49:54 | 4:54 | |
| 23 | 25 m → 11 m | −1.42 % | +0 m / −14 m | 4:46 | 1:54:39 | 4:54 | |
| 24 | 11 m → 9 m | −0.18 % | +1 m / −2 m | 4:53 | 1:59:33 | 4:54 | |
| 25 | 9 m → 5 m | −0.42 % | +3 m / −7 m | 4:54 | 2:04:27 | 4:54 | |
| 26 | 5 m → 11 m | +0.59 % | +6 m / −1 m | 5:04 | 2:09:31 | 4:54 | |
| 27 | 11 m → 13 m | +0.23 % | +3 m / −0 m | 4:58 | 2:14:29 | 4:54 | |
| 28 | 13 m → 7 m | −0.64 % | +0 m / −6 m | 4:50 | 2:19:19 | 4:54 | |
| 29 | 7 m → 9 m | +0.21 % | +4 m / −2 m | 4:59 | 2:24:18 | 4:54 | |
| 30 | 9 m → 12 m | +0.35 % | +4 m / −0 m | 5:00 | 2:29:18 | 4:54 | |
| 31 | 12 m → 26 m | +1.38 % | +19 m / −5 m | 5:24 | 2:34:42 | 4:54 | |
| 32 | 26 m → 32 m | +0.64 % | +12 m / −6 m | 5:11 | 2:39:53 | 4:54 | |
| 33 | 32 m → 32 m | 0.00 % | +4 m / −4 m | 4:58 | 2:44:51 | 4:54 | |
| 34 | 32 m → 27 m | −0.54 % | +4 m / −10 m | 4:55 | 2:49:46 | 4:54 | |
| 35 | 27 m → 14 m | −1.33 % | +0 m / −13 m | 4:46 | 2:54:32 | 4:54 | |
| 36 | 14 m → 13 m | −0.04 % | +1 m / −1 m | 4:54 | 2:59:27 | 4:54 | |
| 37 | 13 m → 12 m | −0.12 % | +3 m / −4 m | 4:56 | 3:04:23 | 4:54 | |
| 38 | 12 m → 13 m | +0.06 % | +4 m / −4 m | 4:59 | 3:09:22 | 4:54 | |
| 39 | 13 m → 10 m | −0.28 % | +3 m / −6 m | 4:55 | 3:14:17 | 4:54 | |
| 40 | 10 m → 8 m | −0.17 % | +2 m / −4 m | 4:55 | 3:19:12 | 4:54 | |
| 41 | 8 m → 9 m | +0.03 % | +3 m / −3 m | 4:57 | 3:24:09 | 4:54 | |
| 42 | 9 m → 9 m | +0.03 % | +3 m / −2 m | 4:57 | 3:29:05 | 4:54 | |
| 42.20 | 9 m → 4 m | −2.46 % | +0 m / −5 m | 4:40 | 3:30:00 | 4:54 |
The course, kilometre by kilometre
Start and finish are 348 metres apart: the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon is a loop.
Highest and lowest point are 36 metres apart, and start and finish are at practically the same height.
The race is held in Kapstadt, South Africa, in May, on tarmac throughout.
Elevation gain and climbs
194 metres up and 200 down: 4 climbs, several of them long enough to break a rhythm.
The hardest stretch runs from km 5.7 to 6.5: 21 metres at 2.7 % on average. It comes early enough to take on fresh legs.
Against a 3:30 target the terrain costs about 2 minutes compared with a flat loop. Adjust for gradient and what remains is what the legs actually paid.
The route on the map
The course runs as a loop through Kapstadt and finishes 348 metres from where it started.
The GPX data of this course
The smoothed profile is stored every 50 metres: 845 points with latitude, longitude, elevation and gradient. The elevations here do not come from the course file but from a terrain model: the ones in the original were unusable.
We do not hand this course out as a file: the line comes from a third-party source and is not ours to pass on. Once a course is built from runners’ own recordings, the file appears here.
Common questions
- How hilly is the Kapstadt Marathon?
- 194 metres of ascent and 200 of descent over 42.195 km. 65 % of the course sits between −1 and +1 per cent, and 3 % steeper than three. That makes it a hilly course.
- Where is the hardest section?
- Between km 5.7 and 6.5, gaining 21 metres at 2.7 % on average. The steepest single ramp is at km 30.3 at 6.0 %, the steepest descent at km 33.4 at −3.7 %.
- Is this a good course for a personal best?
- Minetti's cost model puts this course at 0.97 % against a flat one. On a three-and-a-half-hour target that is roughly 2 minutes.
- Is the course a loop?
- Yes. Start and finish are 348 metres apart.
- Where does this elevation data come from?
- Streckendatei „Sanlam Cape Town Marathon 2025 – 42.195 km“ von goandrace.com (Garmin-Connect-Export), übergeben am 18.08.2026, 1436 Punkte. Elevation: Höhenwerte derselben Datei — Korrelation mit dem Geländemodell 0,98.
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