LGT Alpin Marathon: Course, Elevation & Route Profile

Course & Elevation

The race starts at the LGT Bank in Bendern and the first ten kilometres run flat along the Rhine through Schaan to Vaduz. In the Staedtle the first real climb begins at kilometre 10, a kilometre and a half at 8.6 percent through the old village, past the vineyards of the Prince's Hofkellerei and below Vaduz Castle.

The decisive block follows immediately. From kilometre 12 the course climbs 5.2 kilometres at 12.6 percent average with ramps to 21 percent, through forest into the Walser village of Triesenberg and on via Frommenhaus and Rotenboden. After a short breather comes the next wall at kilometre 18.3, 2.75 kilometres at 10.5 percent past Masescha up to the Silum alp. The high point of the first half sits at about 1,515 metres, after which the route drops to Steg, the half-marathon finish and the relay changeover.

The second half is pure mountain country. Through the Valorsch valley the course hits its second big climb at kilometre 31.5, 2.55 kilometres at 13 percent with pitches over 27 percent up to the Sass Fuerkli, at around 1,770 metres the highest point of the day. From there the Malbun valley opens up, and after the descent a closing loop runs past the Malbun peace chapel and the Turna and Pradamee alps to the finish. Overall 36 percent of the route is asphalt, 42 percent gravel road and 22 percent mountain path; poles are not permitted.

Pacing Strategy

This race is paced in the first ten kilometres, before anything hurts. The flat opening along the Rhine can be run at road-marathon pace, but the 1,865 metres of climbing all have to be paid for from kilometre 10 onwards. Treat the valley section as a controlled warm-up and build your target time around the climbs rather than around kilometres one to ten.

Two blocks decide the day. The first is the long climb from kilometre 12, 5.2 kilometres at 12.6 percent: at those gradients brisk hiking is often more economical than running, and since poles are banned you need a hiking stride with hands on thighs that you have actually practised. The second is the ramp to the Sass Fuerkli from kilometre 31.5, 2.55 kilometres at 13 percent with short pitches over 27 percent, run on 32-kilometre legs above 1,600 metres.

The classic trap sits between them: the descent from Silum to Steg between kilometres 21 and 25 runs fast and costs exactly the quadriceps you will want on the Sass Fuerkli. Plan for the weather too. The start is in the warm Rhine valley, the final third is open high-alpine terrain, and one set of kit has to cover both. The cut-offs in Vaduz at 10:15 and in Steg at 13:00 are the hard frame the plan has to fit inside.

Training plan for LGT Alpin Marathon: 12-week build

Age-group runners should budget four and a half to six and a half hours; the organiser sends pacemakers out on 4:30, 5:00 and 6:00 targets and the Malbun finish closes at 16:00. The demand comes in two halves: roughly an hour of flat road running, then four to five hours of mountain work. 28.5 percent of the route is steep uphill against only 9.7 percent steep downhill, and at close to 45 vertical metres per kilometre the effort is mostly steady aerobic with long stretches of alternating hiking and running.

The two big climbs decide the race: 658 metres of gain from kilometre 12 and 333 metres from kilometre 31.5. The first arrives on fresh legs and invites you to overcook it; the second decides the day because it comes after more than three hours of work and in thinner air. Between them sits the descent to Steg, which supplies the eccentric load you carry into the final climb.

Conditions belong in the plan. This is the first alpine marathon of the season, held in mid-June when fitness is still spring fitness and almost nobody has altitude work behind them. The final third runs above 1,500 metres in open terrain where cold, wet and cloud are all possible even when the valley start is warm. Thirteen stations line the course, eight of them with solid food, which keeps what you carry light.

Three things matter in preparation. First, long sessions with 1,200 to 1,800 metres of continuous climbing, to build pure mountain endurance. Second, power-hiking without poles on gradients above twelve percent, because that is exactly what the rules allow and the course demands. Third, the transition: runs where you move straight from 60 to 90 minutes of flat pace into a long climb reproduce the break at kilometre 10 realistically. Add downhill repeats on tired legs so the drop to Steg does not cost you the Sass Fuerkli.