2026 World Athletics Road Running Championships

How to Watch the World Athletics Road Running Championships 2026 Copenhagen

The World Athletics Road Running Championships 2026 will bring the world's best distance runners to Copenhagen, Denmark from 19-20 September 2026, with world titles decided over the One Mile, 5K and Half Marathon. Elite athletes will race through the Danish capital alongside thousands of amateur runners.

Event Facts

Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
Dates: 19-20 September 2026
Disciplines: One Mile, 5K and Half Marathon
Format: Men's and women's individual world titles, plus team competitions
Mass Participation: Up to 65,000 runners are expected across the championship weekend
Streaming: Live and free on Eurovision Sport, subject to broadcast restrictions

World Road Running Championships 2026 Schedule

All times listed below are in local Copenhagen time (CEST) and are subject to change. The schedule includes both elite championship races and the public mass participation starts.

Date	Race Times
Saturday 19 September	10:10 – Elite Women's One Mile
10:30 – Elite Men's One Mile
10:35 – One Mile B+C
10:36 – One Mile Mass Race
14:10 – Elite Women's 5K
14:40 – Elite Men's 5K
14:41 – 5K B+C
14:42 – 5K Mass Race
Sunday 20 September	09:10 – Elite Women's Half Marathon
09:45 – Elite Men's Half Marathon
09:46 – Half Marathon B+C
09:47 – Half Marathon Mass Race

What are the World Road Running Championships?

The World Athletics Road Running Championships combine elite international competition with mass participation road racing. Copenhagen 2026 will crown six individual world champions, with men's and women's titles contested across three distances.

There are also team world titles. The One Mile and 5K feature mixed team competitions, with each nation's score based on its two fastest men and two fastest women. In the Half Marathon, separate men's and women's team results are calculated using the three fastest runners from each country.

One of the defining features of the World Athletics Road Running Championships is that recreational runners can take part on the same championship weekend as the world's elite. The mass races are open to runners of all abilities, with no general age limit.

World Athletics Road Running Championships 2026 Race Course

All three races at the 2026 World Athletics Road Running Championships take runners through the heart of Copenhagen on flat, fast courses built for record-breaking performances, with Fælledparken serving as the festival hub for both Saturday's and Sunday's events.

The half marathon, held on Sunday 20 September, reuses the well-tested route from the 2024 and 2025 Copenhagen Half Marathon, guiding up to 35,000 runners past many of the city's most iconic landmarks before finishing in Fælledparken.

On Saturday 19 September, the one mile course sends runners down Østerbrogade in a distinctive V-shape, through a high-energy power zone at Trianglen, and on to a finish line past Parken Stadium, while the 5K course winds by the historic Nyboder district and along a dual-direction stretch beside Copenhagen's lakes, giving spectators a chance to spot the elite front-runners as they pass.

World Athletics Road Running Championships 2023 Results

The previous World Athletics Road Running Championships took place in Riga, Latvia in 2023, marking the inaugural edition of the new championship format. The following edition, scheduled for San Diego in 2025, was later cancelled. The event brought together the Road Mile, 5K and Half Marathon world championships alongside mass participation races for recreational runners.

Kenya dominated the championships, topping the medal table with five golds, three silvers and four bronzes for 12 medals overall. Ethiopia finished second with two golds and seven total medals, while the United States placed third with one gold and two total medals.

Kenya swept the half marathon titles in Riga, with Sabastian Sawe claiming the men's crown in 59:10 and Peres Jepchirchir taking the women's title in 1:07:25, a result that also carried Kenya to gold in both the men's and women's half marathon team competitions.

The 5K races produced a split result: Ethiopia's Hagos Gebrhiwet won the men's title in 12:59, while Kenya's Beatrice Chebet took the women's crown in 14:35.

Ethiopia and the United States shared the honors in the road mile. Diribe Welteji won the women's race for Ethiopia in a world record 4:20.98, and Hobbs Kessler took the men's title for the United States in a world record 3:56.13.

Watch More Athletics Live on Eurovision Sport

Fans can watch the World Athletics Road Running Championships Copenhagen 2026 and enjoy more athletics for free on Eurovision Sport, subject to broadcast restrictions.

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