San Diego Marathon

Course & Elevation

The Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Marathon is the original race of the Rock 'n' Roll Running Series, first held in 1998 and run on a Sunday in late May or early June with a half marathon that starts at the same time. The marathon starts at 6:15 am on Sixth Avenue at Quince Street beside Balboa Park and finishes at Ash and Union Streets in downtown San Diego, with a finish line festival at Waterfront Park. The organisers say the course passes through up to eight neighbourhoods, and bands play along the route. In 2025 the marathon went through Hillcrest, Normal Heights and North Park, then Mission Hills, Old Town and Ocean Beach toward SeaWorld, before turning back through Bay Park and Linda Vista to Balboa Park and downtown. The course has been changed several times: it first started at 6th Avenue and Palm and finished on Broadway, and later finishes included SeaWorld in 2010 and Petco Park from 2013. The time limit is seven hours, and there is one cut-off at mile 8.3 (University Avenue and Grim Avenue); runners who miss it are diverted onto the half marathon course and recorded as did-not-finish. A 5K is run on the Saturday.