pacertrip.

PACERTRIP CITY EDITIONUS / RACE GUIDE

St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend

The city you want to run becomes your next trip.

Memphis
US

Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0

Race date in 55 days: Dec 5, 2026 Sat
City · Distance: Memphis · 42.195km · 21.1km · 10km +1 more events
Entry fee: $70Varies by event and entry period
Status: ClosedWed, June 3, 2026 ~ TBDSee how to enter ↗

Official website ↗D-day as of Oct 11, 2026

About the race Runner stories How to enter Course Race Prep Travel

Why you dream of this race

THE DREAM

ABOUT THE RACE

A day you'll remember,
long past the finish line.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital fundraising marathon.

2026 marks the 25th anniversary and course passes through the hospital campus.

The road to your own record

Picture the course in advance
and find the pace that fits you.

When the city cheers

Streets lined with cheers, runners all around.
You'll be part of that scene.

The trip that follows the run

Take it slow with the finish still in you,
and meet the city all over again.

Stories from runners who've been there.

From the joy of finishing to the tough moments — read what runners wrote themselves.

Race reports: 3

Moocow870Ran in 2025 · Finish time 5:24

“I finished at 5:24hr and I didn’t care I missed my 5hr goal.”

Moocow870 finished the 2025 St. Jude Marathon — his first — in 5:24. Calf and hip-flexor pain at mile 22 forced him to walk most of the rest of the way, but phone calls with his wife and a friend carried him to the finish, and he wrote that he felt nothing but joy at completing his first marathon.

Read the original on Reddit r/firstmarathon

CalthyrRan in 2024 · Finish time 3:29:52

“I began to get emotional as I saw the kids and thought about how much the patients and their families go through.”

Calthyr completed the 2024 St. Jude Marathon in 3 hours 29 minutes 52 seconds. Passing through the St. Jude campus was emotional as Calthyr thought about the children receiving treatment and their families, and wrote that the support in the neighbourhood sections helped maintain pace during the second half.

Read the original on Reddit r/running

DaneRan in 2011 · Finish time 3:06:16

“The biggest thrill of the whole race is when we all go through the St Jude campus.”

The runner received a huge boost from the children on campus and the cheers from the spectators. The hills in the latter stages and the thinning crowds made it tough, but the runner picked up the pace again near the end and finished in 3:06:16.

Read the original on See Dane Run

We translated a short line from each public race report and summarized the experience. Finish times are as stated by the author, and past editions may differ from this year's weather and operations.

See it on video,
feel it through their stories.

Preview the course and read what runners who went before you wrote.

Opening Ceremony | St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

View on YouTube

This may be from a past edition. Check the organizer for this year's course and operations.

The way in that fits you

YOUR ENTRY

How to reach the start line —
start with what fits you.

Here are the ways to enter and what each requires.
Check the organizer's page for whether entries are open.

General entry entry has closed

It ran Jun 3, 2026–.
Check separately whether other entry routes are open and spots remain.

Registration history · The 2026 race opened entry on Wed, June 3, 2026

General entry

Entry cost $70

Only the 5K is still available.

The full marathon, half marathon and 10K are sold out.

Organizer's page

Official race website Entry options

From the start line to the finish

RACE WEEK

Your 42.195km

Know the course and time limit, and race day comes into focus.

From the 2025 edition

Runners start · local timeFrom 08:00

START

Memphis, TN

Start · Google Maps

FINISH

AutoZone Park, Union Ave

Finish · Google Maps

Runners start · local time — Marathon·Half 08:00 · 10K·5K 07:00

The marathon and half marathon start at 8:00 AM from B.B.

King Boulevard and Beale Street.

The 10K and 5K start at 7:00 AM from B.B. King Boulevard and Madison Avenue.

Course passes through downtown Memphis and the historic Beale Street Entertainment District,

and the section that runs through the St. Jude campus is a major highlight of the event.

The time limit for the marathon and half marathon is 6.5 hours, and the 10K and 5K are 1.5 hours.

The minimum age is 16 for the marathon, 14 for half marathon, and 12 for the 10K, while the 5K has no age limit.

The event has been held since 2002 and will celebrate its 25th edition in 2026, and last year more than 22,000 participants and supporters joined together.

It is a fundraising-focused event with more than 4,000 volunteers involved in operations.

Typical race-season temperature: around 6°C (42°F): Long sleeves + a throwaway layer for the start

Participant benefits

Timing chip

Finisher medal

Event T-shirt

Finisher certificate

Bag drop

To the start line,
step by step.

Pick up your bib, check your wave.
So on race morning, you can just run.

From the 2025 edition

Pick up your bib at the expo

Renaissance Convention Center, pre-race pickup only (no race-day pickup)

Renasant Convention Center

Google Maps Directions

Stations & transport near the venue

Getting to the startMarathon starts at B.B.

Source · checked Aug 22, 2026

More details

Getting to the start

Marathon starts at B.B. King Blvd.

and Beale St. in downtown Memphis.

No dedicated train/subway station at the start, but it's in the walkable downtown core, reachable via MATA buses or the Main Street Trolley line.

Getting to the finish

Finish is on Union Ave. adjacent to the finish festival at AutoZone Park, also downtown, near the Main Street Trolley line.

Start shuttle

Organizer SAG shuttles transport runners who cannot finish back to AutoZone Park; no separate spectator/runner shuttle to start noted.

Source · checked Aug 22, 2026

READY TO RUN

From race morning to after the finish.

Your start time, fuel and bag drop.
Know them ahead and the run feels easier.

As the race takes place on 5 December,

check the temperature before the start and choose layers while considering the difference between the waiting conditions and the temperature you will feel while running.

The marathon and half marathon start at 8:00 am, while the 10K and 5K start at 7:00 am, so plan your breakfast and travel time around your start time.

Prepare using the nutrition and equipment you normally use, and avoid trying new food or equipment for the first time on race day.

Choose accommodation primarily according to its proximity to the start of your event.

The marathon and half marathon start at B.B.

King Boulevard and Beale Street, while the 10K and 5K start at B.B.

King Boulevard and Madison Avenue.

Check the Packet Pickup location and times first in the race-week schedule, and decide your route to the start the day before.

In 2026, the marathon, half marathon and 2-Race Challenge were sold out, so check the events that are still available in advance.

Times are local to Memphis. Check the latest official information before the race.

A trip built around the race

STAY A LITTLE

MAKE IT A RUNTRIP

The race is one day,
the trip can be longer.

From a hotel that makes race morning easy,
to the meals and views you'll enjoy with the medal on.

Arrive Memphis

Hotel · 884m

9.1/10(869)

View on Booking.com

Memphis car rental (Qeeq)

Compare budget-friendly rental cars with a free-cancellation option (check the price when booking) · Check price and book

View on Qeeq

Memphis: Signature Brewery Guided Tour

$73

St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend

About St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend — what makes it special

A day you'll remember,long past the finish line.

The road to your own record

When the city cheers

The trip that follows the run