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Oct 3, 2027
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The Cardiff Half Marathon is a city half marathon through the Welsh capital, held on a Sunday in early October. It was founded by Barnardo's in 2003, when 1,500 runners took part, and is now organised by Run 4 Wales, a not-for-profit charitable trust. The race starts on Castle Street outside Cardiff Castle at 10:00 and finishes on King Edward VII Avenue in the Civic Centre. In the organisers' description, the course passes the Principality Stadium and Cardiff City Stadium, winds through Penarth Marina, crosses the Cardiff Bay Barrage, passes the Senedd and the Wales Millennium Centre and circles Roath Park Lake before the finish. The organisers call the course flat and fast, although the 2026 women's winner said there were some hills, especially near the end. The cut-off time is 4 hours. The event holds a World Athletics Elite Road Race Label, and a children's race, the Cardiff Half Junior, takes place on the Saturday. In 2026 the official results list 24,038 finishers, and entry went through a ballot for the first time in 2025 after the race sold out. The organisers say more than £3 million is raised for charity each year.
Typical climate for the race month — an estimate, not a forecast or a race-day record
Early October in Cardiff is mild but wet: average highs are about 15°C and lows about 8°C, with rain of 1 mm or more on around 15 days of the month.
The Race
Cardiff
The Cardiff Half Marathon was founded by Barnardo's in 2003 and had 1,500 runners that year. It is now run by Run 4 Wales, and the official results listed 24,038 finishers in 2026. Entry was by ballot for the first time in 2025, when the race sold out.
In October 2026 Kenya's Joyciline Jepkosgei won in 1:05:40, taking 12 seconds off the course record set by Edith Chelimo in 2017. Ethiopia's Wede Kefale finished 14 seconds behind, and Jepkosgei made her decisive move around Roath Park Lake with about three miles to go. The men's winner, Gideon Kiprotich, ran 59:34, 12 seconds outside Yismaw Dillu's men's record.
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00:59:22
Yismaw Dillu (2025)
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