Odense City Half 2026

Odin lost an eye to gain supreme wisdom 👁️… you'll gain experience running on his old playground 🏃.

At the end of the month of May, grab your best running shoes and head to Denmark 🇩🇰 in the third largest city of the country: Odense. No Valhalla on the agenda, but 21.1 km on the sacred lands of the Scandinavian god of war ⚔️. Odense literally means "the sanctuary of Odin" 🏛️. The legend says that after leaving Asgard (the realm of the gods), Odin settled on the island of Odinsey, the former name of the region of Funen 🏝️. So when you run in Odense, you're treading on mythical ground, literally, where a god might have established his earthly sanctuary. Weather-wise 🌤️, at this time in Denmark it's perfect: between 15 and 20°C on average, with long days (the sun sets around 9:30 pm 🌅). So you have no excuse!

The Odense City Half offers 4 races for 4️⃣ different audiences, and we'll detail them all for you because it's important to know what you're getting into 📋, just like in the fairy tales of Andersen, who was born in the city. Child-friendly 👦, or utterly terrifying? 😱 Well, for the Half Marathon 🏃, we go long, a bit like The Snow Queen. The route is a loop 🔄 in the heart of Odense ❤️, between the streets of the historic center 🏛️, green spaces 🌳, and urban atmosphere 🏙️. Don't worry, you probably won't look like Olaf ☃️, we promise! As for the 10 km, it's more like the Steadfast Tin Soldier🪖. It's not the longest distance but you still need to stay focused and determined 💪. There's also a 5 km if you don't feel up for the other two distances or if you want to smash your record on a short distance. It's a race like Thumbelina, it's short but full of twists and turns 🤙. Enough to be proud of yourself in the end! 

Of course, let's not forget our little kids, the Nightingales 👶. They too have a 2.5 km race with a medal awarded 🏅. Little champions from 5 to 14 years old 🧒 can unleash themselves on an adapted and safe route 🛡️, and believe us, watching them cross the finish line with their medal 🥇, warms the heart 💙.

After discovering the city by running, you'll get to discover it.. by eating! 😜 Denmark is the kingdom of smørrebrød. You'll also get to taste the famous Danish pastries 🥐 (the real ones, which inspired the "Danishes" found everywhere in the world 🌍), frikadeller (meatballs 🍖), and flæskesteg (crispy roast pork). For culture enthusiasts, the Danish Railway Museum 🚂 (Jernbanemuseum) showcases about twenty real locomotives and centuries-old carriages 🚊, including royal carriages 👑 and a snowplow locomotive from 1869 ❄️. The Saint Knud Cathedral ⛪, the first saint in Denmark's history 🇩🇰, is worth a visit with its 54-meter-high tower 🗼 and sculpted wooden doors 🚪 (and it's free 🐀). The Odense Zoo 🦁 is considered one of the best in Europe 🌍 and if you need a bit of magic 🪄, 30 km away, the castle of Egeskov 🏰 from the 16th century is waiting for you! 🫵

So, run to write your own story in the footsteps of the gods of Scandinavian mythology. Who knows, you might hit your personal best? 😉