← All eventsZurich Marató Barcelona
A fast, central, gently undulating (~156m) urban marathon redesigned to remove 180° turns and climbs, past Sagrada Família and the city's landmarks. Start Passeig de Gràcia/Plaça de Catalunya, finish Plaça d'Espanya. A popular Boston/World Athletics qualifier. Next 14 Mar 2027, 08:30 start.
One of Europe's fast PB marathons. 42.195km of closed city-centre road through Barcelona, redesigned to strip out the 180-degree turns and sharper climbs that used to break rhythm. Mid-March, 08:30 start.
It runs past the Sagrada Família and the city's landmarks, from the grand Passeig de Gràcia to a finish at Plaça d'Espanya. Gently undulating, roughly 156m, so flat-ish rather than pancake-flat.
Fast doesn't mean easy. The rolls add up over 42km. The win is running the rises by effort and not chasing the field off the line. Do that and Barcelona gives you a genuine PB.
Is Zurich Marató Barcelona for you?
- Runners chasing a marathon PB. The redesigned course flows, so a well-paced day converts your fitness into a fast time rather than fighting the road.
- Disciplined pacers. Even effort over the gentle rolls beats surging every rise, and this course rewards patience through halfway.
- Runners who have banked the volume. A fast course flatters no one who skips the long runs, it wants 3 to 4 runs of 28km-plus in the legs.
- Boston and World Athletics chasers. It's a certified qualifier, so a strong time here counts where it matters.
Training plan for Zurich Marató Barcelona
A training plan for Zurich Marató Barcelona isn't a generic base build. Beina reads the event's exact demands, looks at your specific profile and the time you actually have, and maps a highly adapted plan to the start line.
- 42.195km of gently undulating closed road, about 156m of climbing that quietly adds up over the distance
- Even-effort pacing: let pace drift on the rises, take it back on the flats, never surge over the rolls
- Fuelling for 2h30 to 5h-plus at 60 to 90g of carbs an hour, rehearsed rather than improvised
- A possibly warm Mediterranean finish, climbing from 8 to 14C at the start toward late morning
- Marathon-pace long run: up to 32km with 15 to 20km at goal pace, fuelled exactly as on race day
- Progressive long run: 26 to 32km starting easy, driving the last 8 to 10km down to marathon pace
- Long tempo: 40 to 60 minutes continuous at marathon pace, mid-week
- Threshold intervals of 3 to 4 x 3km with 90s recovery, plus a mid-week medium-long run of 14 to 18km
- Built from your current fitness and the time you actually have
- Adapts every week as Beina learns how you respond
- Syncs your sessions straight to Garmin and Wahoo
- One clear next session, never a wall of spreadsheet
