Race guide
Nairobi marathons: the StanChart and Nairobi City Marathon courses
Nairobi hosts two big marathons, the Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon and the Nairobi City Marathon. Both are full 42.195 km races through the capital, but the courses are quite different to run.
Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon
The StanChart course is an out-and-back route, so you see the leaders coming the other way and finish close to where you started. On our map the full marathon has about 402 m of climbing, spread over long gentle drags rather than steep hills.
Nairobi City Marathon
The Nairobi City Marathon is a point-to-point course, starting and finishing in different places. On our map the full marathon has about 229 m of climbing, noticeably less than the StanChart course.
Running at Nairobi's altitude
Nairobi sits at about 1,700 to 1,800 m above sea level. Runners coming from the coast or from abroad feel the thinner air, especially in the first half. Start slower than your usual race pace, drink early, and save effort for the climbs in the second half.
Frame your race
Both races are available as framed 3D maps. Pick 42K, 21K, 10K or 5K, add your name, date and finish time, and we work out your pace. If you ran with a GPS watch, upload your GPX and we print your exact line.
Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon Framed 3D map · from KES 4,000 
Nairobi City Marathon Framed 3D map · from KES 4,000 
Karura Forest, Gate A to Gate F Framed 3D map · from KES 4,000