Great Breweries Marathon.
The Great Breweries Marathon starts and finishes at the Duvel Moortgat brewery in Breendonk, and it is the only distance of the day that truly earns the name: only the marathon runs past all three partner breweries. Forty-two kilometres of flat Flemish polder – 94 percent of the route sits in the level band – with a beer at the finish.
Great Breweries Marathon 2027: Course, Route Profile & Map
The start is on the Steenbossen, right outside the Duvel Moortgat gate; the finish is three hundred metres further, inside the brewery site itself. Between them lie 42 kilometres of country roads and farm lanes around Puurs, Buggenhout and Steenhuffel, the flat land between the Scheldt and the Dender.
The route is built around the three breweries, and that is not a marketing figure: it comes within 48 metres of Brouwerij Bosteels at Buggenhout and 52 metres of Palm & De Hoorn at Steenhuffel. The 25-kilometre loop reaches only one of them, the 17 kilometres neither – to see all three you have to run the full distance.
Elevation is not a factor. The course sits between five and 34 metres above sea level, not one section rates as a climb, and the 82 metres of total gain are spread across barely perceptible undulations. What defines the day is the landscape and the finish: around 5,000 people are out, a good 3,000 running and 2,000 walking, and the finisher package holds a beer at the line and a gift basket of Belgian beer to take home.
| Start | Length | Ø | Max. | Gain | Cat. |
|---|
Climb categories follow the road-cycling convention and rate the terrain itself (length and gradient) regardless of sport: Cat. 4 marks the easiest rated climbs, Cat. 1 the hardest, and HC (hors catégorie, “beyond categorization”) is reserved for the most brutal ascents. Short climbs below the Cat. 4 threshold stay unrated.
How to pace Great Breweries Marathon.
Start under control
Nothing on this course regulates your pace for you – no climb, no descent, no change of surface that forces a shift. A marathon on 94 percent flat ground is run on even splits, and the mistake it punishes is a first third run too quickly because it feels effortless.
Hold your rhythm
The real trap is the wind. The polder between Puurs and Steenhuffel is open, the roads are long and straight, and there is next to no shelter. On the headwind sections, running alone costs far more than any hill on this course ever could – find a group early and stay in it, even at two seconds a kilometre under your plan.
Spend what is left
The race is decided in the final third, and not by the terrain but by the monotony. From kilometre 30 it goes quiet between the fields, the crowds are thin, and there is no change of ground to reorient yourself against. Split fuelling and concentration into fixed five-kilometre blocks, and do not let a quarter-past-nine start tempt you into giving away the cool first third – the afternoon warms up and you will still be out in it.
Training plan for Great Breweries Marathon: 12-week build
Build the base
As an age-group runner you will be out for three to five hours; the finish closes at 19:00, which is generous for the marathon distance. The effort is about as uniform as a marathon gets: aerobic throughout, with no climb to unload the muscles and no descent to change your stride.
Train race pace
That uniformity is the demand. The race is decided over the last twelve kilometres, where neither terrain nor crowds contribute anything and the legs repeat the same movement for the ten-thousandth time. On top of that comes the wind on the open polder straights, which lifts the true load well above what the pace suggests.
Rehearse the course
So the emphasis is marathon-pace volume rather than hill work: long runs of 28 to 34 kilometres with 12 to 20 at goal pace in the back half, plus one threshold run of 20 to 40 minutes a week. Do at least two long runs on open, wind-exposed ground – a dyke, a canal path, a farm track – and one of them deliberately alone, rehearsing the situation of the final twelve kilometres.
Arrive fresh
Early May in Flanders typically brings ten to 18 degrees, but a 09:15 start means the second half of your race falls in the midday warmth on a course with no shade. Plan two or three midday sessions, rehearse your drinking at race pace, and let the beer at the finish be a reward rather than part of the fuelling plan.
Courses
Download the Great Breweries Marathon course as a GPX file for your watch or bike computer.
Let YOUB adapt your plan for Great Breweries Marathon dynamically
Ben connects your goal, the course, current load, recovery, and calendar. Your plan stays pointed at race day even when real life is not perfectly plannable.
Everything about Great Breweries Marathon.
How long is Great Breweries Marathon?
Great Breweries Marathon is 42.2 km long. That distance shapes how much aerobic endurance, pace durability, and race-specific work belong in the training plan.
How much elevation gain does Great Breweries Marathon have?
Great Breweries Marathon has around 82 m of elevation gain over 42.2 km. That affects pacing, muscular load, and preparation for late-race sections.
What is the route profile of Great Breweries Marathon?
Great Breweries Marathon is classified as Flat, averaging 1.9 vertical metres per kilometre. 94% of the route is flat, 2% climbs moderately (2 to 6%) and 0% is steeper than 6%.
Is Great Breweries Marathon a loop course?
Yes, Great Breweries Marathon is laid out as a loop: start and finish are in the same place.
Is there a GPX file for the Great Breweries Marathon course?
Yes. The Great Breweries Marathon course is on this page as a free GPX download — ready to import into Garmin, Wahoo, Komoot, Strava or any other app that reads GPX.
How should I prepare for Great Breweries Marathon?
Preparation for Great Breweries Marathon should account for 42.2 km, 82 m of elevation gain, current training load, and available training time. An adaptive plan helps place key sessions without ignoring recovery and real life.
What pacing strategy works for Great Breweries Marathon?
The pacing strategy for Great Breweries Marathon should reflect 42.2 km, 82 m of elevation gain, and your current fitness. Start controlled and keep margin for sections where the profile or fatigue makes target pace harder.
When does Great Breweries Marathon take place?
Great Breweries Marathon takes place on May 2, 2027.
Where does Great Breweries Marathon take place?
Great Breweries Marathon takes place in Puurs-Sint-Amands, Belgium.
Which distances does Great Breweries Marathon offer?
Great Breweries Marathon offers 3 distances — Marathon: 42.2 km; 25 km: 25 km; 17 km: 17 km.
How do I register for Great Breweries Marathon?
Registration runs through the organiser: greatbreweriesmarathon.be. YOUB shows you the course, elevation profile and training plan for your preparation.
