The Comrades Marathon Up Run on June 14 will feature an earlier start time and a new three-group start format aimed at improving congestion, safety and runner flow.
Image: Comrades Marathon Association
The 2026 Comrades Marathon has recorded its highest qualification success rate in more than a decade, with organisers confirming that 21 633 runners have officially qualified for next month’s race as the event prepares to introduce a major new three-group start system.
The Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) announced this week that 95.37% of entrants successfully completed the qualification process for the 99th edition of the race on June 14 – an increase from last year’s 93.96%.
This year’s race, which marks the 50th Up-Run from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, sold out its 22 000-entry quota in less than 10 hours when general entries opened in November last year, underlining the growing demand for the iconic ultra-marathon.
Following the substitution process and final qualification deadline on May 4, the CMA confirmed that 21 633 runners met all entry requirements, including qualifying times, medical questionnaires and transport information.
CMA race director Sue Forge praised runners and organisers for achieving one of the highest qualification percentages in recent race history.
“We are thrilled by the exceptionally high percentage of successfully qualified runners for this year’s event,” Forge said. “Our Entries Office team worked tirelessly leading up to the deadline, providing ongoing communication and support to help runners complete all the necessary requirements.”
Forge said organisers were particularly encouraged by runners embracing the event’s expanded medical and transport information requirements, which were introduced to strengthen race-day safety and operational planning.
The CMA also confirmed sweeping operational changes for this year’s race, including an earlier start time and a new three-group start format aimed at improving congestion, safety and runner flow.
Group 1 runners will start at 5am, followed by Group 2 at 5.15am and Group 3 at 5.30am. The field will be divided into seeded batches according to qualifying times, with faster qualifiers placed in earlier groups. Approximately 9 952 runners will start in Group 1, 6 704 in Group 2 and 4 972 in Group 3.
Forge said the staggered starts build on the success of last year’s two-group system, which significantly reduced congestion at the start.
“Our principal focus is reducing congestion on the road, improving access to emergency and medical support and creating safer and more comfortable running conditions from the start of the race,” she said.
The CMA stressed that all runners will still receive the full 12 hours to complete the 85.777km race, regardless of their allocated start group. Organisers have also introduced an enhanced “traffic-light” cut-off system along the route to provide runners with clearer pacing guidance and improve operational management during the race.
Runners can now check their official seeding batches and start groups on the Comrades Marathon website.