Valletta Marathon 2026

There are people who go to Malta for the beach 🏖️ and the festive atmosphere. Others for its history. Today it's through a whole different perspective. 🌊

Malta is officially the ninth smallest country in the world 🌍. This hasn't stopped it from being coveted, invaded, defended, and rebuilt by almost everyone for 7,000 years: Phoenicians, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Knights of St. John, French, British... All have been here. None left indifferent. Neither will you, but for different reasons, including 42 km along the Mediterranean 😄.

The Valletta Marathon has only existed since 2022, making it a young race with a backdrop centuries old: it's precisely this paradox that makes it unique 🏛️. Organized every March by the Corsa team, it is currently the only certified marathon and half-marathon on the island by AIMS 📏, and especially the only Maltese event qualifying for the World Marathon Majors, the circuit bringing together Boston, New York, Chicago, Berlin, Tokyo, and London 🌍. This status attracts runners from dozens of nationalities each year who come specifically to achieve a qualifying time in conditions clearly favorable to them: 11°C to 18°C in March, often clear skies, sea breeze, almost flat coastal route 🌤️. Malta has clearly found its winter vocation 👑.

Six formats coexist: the full marathon (42.195 km) for the hard-core, the half-marathon (21.1 km) for the pragmatic, the 10 km, the 5 km, a four-person relay on the half-marathon course, and the 21.1 km Walkathon for those who have decided that the Mediterranean is best admired at a leisurely pace 🚶. Each format has its own starting point: San Pawl il-Baħar for the marathon, Sliema for the half, Valletta for the 10 km, Paola for the 5 km, but all converge at the same finish line 🏁 within Fort Saint Angelo in Birgu 🏰. A paid shuttle provides return transportation from Birgu to the starting areas, as by that time of day, even the bravest prefer the bus 😅.

The marathon route descends by the seashore, from north to south on the east of the island, with the Mediterranean on the left and the Maltese monuments on the right 🌊. You pass golden limestone cliffs, coves, fishing villages 🎣, and fortifications that have witnessed entire empires 🛡️. The profile is generally flat with some rolling sections, nothing to fear, everything to admire 👀. You pass in front of Fort Saint Elmo, built in 1488 by the Knights and famous for withstanding an entire month against Ottoman assaults during the Great Siege of 1565. The finish line is within Fort Saint Angelo in Birgu, from which Grand Master Jean de Valette himself commanded the defense of the island during the same siege ⚔️. It is the only race in the world whose finish line once, in another life, stopped a military invasion 🪖.

This man deserves a moment of attention 👑. At 70 years old, he commanded around 6,000 defenders (knights, mercenaries, Maltese militiamen) against a fleet of more than 200 galleys and about 35,000 soldiers of Suleiman the Magnificent. The siege lasted three and a half months, before the Ottomans departed, leaving around 30,000 dead on the battlefield. The victory is considered by historians as one of the key turning points in the Mediterranean history of the 16th century. The following year, La Valette laid the first stone of a new city, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1980 and European Capital of Culture in 2018 🏛️. The capital of a country spanning 316 km² that changed the course of Europe's history. It's in this city that you will run.

Once the medal is around your neck, Malta effortlessly takes over 😋. The pastizzi, pastries with ricotta or peas, a few cents at any bar, at any time, are the unofficial fuel of the entire island ⛽️. The fenek moqli, rabbit fried with garlic and white wine, is statistically the favorite dish of the Maltese who are the highest per capita consumers of rabbit in Europe, an information that answers no question we had but remains fascinating 🐇. And the co-cathedral Saint John of Valletta houses two original Caravaggios, including the only painting the artist signed with his own name 🎨. The Ġgantija Temples date back to 3600 BC, older than Stonehenge, older than the pyramids 🪨.

Registrations are exclusively done on the marathon's website 💻. Simple but efficient ✨.

The medal is beautiful. It doesn't compare to the soreness, but it compensates. 😄