As many as 1,000 runners or more cross the finish line each year at this race along the banks of the Hocking Canal, which connects with the Ohio River in southeastern Ohio, as the Athens Marathon & Half Marathon unfolds along a gorgeously scenic route that takes runners from the green, tree-lined campus of Ohio University on an out-and-back trail along the canal.
Athens Marathon, Half Marathon & Relay
Date
Apr 19, 2026
Starting Time
8:00 AM
Course
Road
Fees
$30 - $90
Location
Athens
Participants
500-1000
Terrain
Fast & Flat
Environment
Small Town
Temperature
High: 62°
/ Low: 44°
Overview
Course Description
The 13.1-mile course for the half-marathon, much like its 26.2-mile counterpart, is mostly fast and flat with the exception of a fairly steep downhill that descends from the start of the race at the university campus (at South College & East Union Streets) to the second mile marker.
From there, the race flattens out all the way to the turnaround point on the canal at the 6.45-mile point, where runners then turn around and head back along the course they’ve just run.
Runners get a mix of springtime sun — as well as often still-chilly temperatures — along with a mix of semi-urban course through town with the backwoods bicycle trail known locally as the Hockhocking Adena Bikeway, a 19-mile biking trail along the Hocking Canal named for the Adena Native Americans who lived along the river more than 2,000 years ago.
Both half- and full-marathon participants begin their run along the trail just after the 1.5-mile point in the race, and stay on the trail for approximately the next nine miles.
The bikeway takes runners along what was once a railroad bed used by the Columbus and Hocking Valley Railroad lines, though today it’s known for entirely different varieties of vehicles — mountain bikes, rollerblades, wheelchairs and non-motorized scooters, in addition to lots of walkers.
Past Results
