Smart Start: Two Start Areas and a Five-Wave System for 2026

The 2026 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon will feature two distinct start areas and a structured five-wave system, developed as part of our enhanced start operations and designed to improve the participant experience from the first step.

While a five-wave format was introduced as part of last year’s event planning, 2026 will mark the first time this new wave system is implemented on race day.

The long-standing Stadium Start on Fritz Sonnenberg Road in Green Point remains in place for elites and a large portion of the field. It will be complemented by the Beach Road Start, located on Beach Road in Mouille Point, which will host competitors in the AbbottWMM Marathon Tours & Travel Age Group World Championship, alongside 8 000 other marathon participants. The existing batch seeding system remains unchanged, with all marathon participants starting in one of five alternating waves.

Why Two Starts and Five Waves?

These changes are being implemented to significantly reduce batch loading congestion, mitigate route pinch points (most significantly in the first ten kilometres of the marathon), as well as to reduce pressure on our finish line teams. The two starts will allow our race to continue to grow and accommodate more runners.

Importantly, this approach aligns with established best practice at other Abbott World Marathon Majors, where multiple start zones and wave systems are used to manage scale and flow. As the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon continues to gear up towards becoming Africa’s first Major in 2027, this marks a key operational milestone in future-proofing the event to meet global standards.

Thumb-Sucked or Science-Backed?

This configuration has been developed in consultation with Crowd Science, an organisation that advises major sporting events around the world, to maximise flow and safety while maintaining the quality of the race day experience for every runner.

Using route GPX data, road width measurements, historical runner congestion data, details on pinch points such as Stanhope Road and the Company Gardens, historic timing mat data, and predicted pace and seedings, Crowd Science calculated how many runners can move through specific sections of the marathon route.

From there, they assisted our team in building a two-start approach, combined with alternating waves, that reduces density without compromising capacity.

How the Two Starts and Wave System Works

Batching Remains

All runners will still be seeded as per normal into batches A–N. Seeding is based on the best 21.1km and 42.2km times submitted at entry, as well as previous Sanlam Cape Town Marathon results.

Preliminary seeding will be sent out on 23 March 2026 and will be open for queries until 31 March 2026. After that, batching will be accepted as final, with confirmed batch, wave, and start venue information communicated via email on 12 May 2026 in the Final Race Instructions.

On race day, runners will load into batching pens at either the Stadium or Beach Road Start, following the same process from previous years to ensure faster runners go off first.

Getting into Your Wave

Once in their batching pens, runners will then be released into the start chute. The rolling sequence begins with A batch being released into the start chute, followed by B, then C, then D, which together make up the first wave (yellow wave) to go off from the Stadium Start.

With the yellow wave (batches A-D) loaded into the start chute, the next set of batches begin loading into the batching pens at the Stadium Start. The same process will be taking place simultaneously at the Beach Road start.

 

The Flow of Waves

There are five participant waves in total, each distinguished by a colour which will be used as a visual references in directing runners to their specific start.

For example, runners getting off at the Park & Ride drop off point, will follow their colour signage to get to their start area.

The two starts are broken down into waves here:

Three participant waves will be at the Stadium Start:

• Yellow Wave – Made up of Batches A–D
• Pink Wave – Batches G & H
• Red Wave – Batches K–N

Two participant waves will be the Beach Start:

• Blue Wave – Batches E & F
• Green Wave – Batches I & J

The Wheelchair departs at 07:50 followed by the Elite batch at 08:00, both from the Stadium Start and timed with gun to mat timing. The Age Group World Championship batch departs from the Beach Start at 08:05 with mat-to-mat timing. These batches depart before the five participant waves.

The first participant wave to go off (yellow wave) departs from the Stadium Start at 08:10, followed by the first Beach Start wave (blue wave) at 08:27. Waves will alternate between the two starts (Stadium Start and Beach Start) to ensure a smooth, consistent flow of runners onto the course.

The timing between the waves has been calculated to ensure the last runner in each wave is beyond the convergence point of the two waves (the corner of Fritz Sonnenberg and Beach Road) before the next wave goes off.

How Waves ‘Flatten the Curve’

The “wave” approach to the race start not only spreads runners out over time but also uses intentionally sized waves to reduce route and finish line congestion. The first wave, made up of the fastest runners, is the largest. This means more finishers come through earlier in the day. The middle waves, where most runners typically fall within the 4h00 to 4h30 range, have smaller batch sizes to avoid overwhelming the finish line at peak times.

This structure helps lower density at any given moment across the finish area and eases pressure on hydration, medals, medical teams and other support services. The result is a steadier finish flow and a better experience for all.

Cut-Offs Explained

The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon is mat-to-mat timed for all participants except for the wheelchair and elite athletes. From the time the final runner crosses the start mat, the race clock runs for 6 hours and 30 minutes.

Cut-off times are therefore calculated on the last runner to cross the start mat. This means your official time only begins when you step on the mat, not when your wave starts.

A cut-off timing table will be included in the final race guide for continued reference, but can be viewed below.

Looking Ahead to Race Day

By investing in smart, science-backed solutions, we’re not only improving flow and safety on the day, reaffirming our commitment to delivering a world-class experience for every runner on our journey to becoming Africa’s 1st Major.

Chasing a PB, pacing a friend, or soaking in the streets of Cape Town, this new start structure is designed to help you get the best out of your race from the very first step. We look forward to seeing you on the start line.