Sydney Marathon Turns Its Race Week Into a Citywide Perks Program

The Sydney Marathon, in its second year as a World Marathon Major, has built its race week into a citywide program of food, drink and tourism deals, most of them open to any resident or visitor, whether or not they are among the 40,000 people running on Aug. 30.

The program, called Run Perks, runs from Aug. 24 through Aug. 31, the Monday the event calls Medal Monday. Restaurants, pubs and tourism operators across the city are offering set menus and discounts, pinned to a location-aware map in the event’s app that shows each user the deals nearest to them. Almost all of the offers require no race bib or finisher’s medal, though the organizers say booking rules and dates vary by venue. They range from set restaurant menus to discounted attractions, among them 42 percent off a city attractions pass, a figure chosen to match the marathon’s 42.195-kilometer distance, and a dawn climb of the Sydney Harbour Bridge that, the organizers say, lets spectators watch the start from the summit.

The effort to fill an entire week reflects demand the course itself cannot absorb. The 2026 ballot drew a record 123,000 entries, up 56 percent on the previous year, for a field capped near 40,000, and the race director, Wayne Larden, has said overseas interest was the highest the event has recorded. London’s ballot, the largest among the Majors, draws around 840,000 applications a year. The Sydney race, added to the group in 2025, drew about 33,000 finishers that year and now attracts runners from more than 140 countries.

The New South Wales state government frames race week as an economic event as much as a sporting one. It has projected that the marathon’s place among the Majors will add about 300 million Australian dollars (about $210 million) to the state’s visitor economy over a decade. Steve Kamper, the state minister for sport and tourism, said Run Perks means “more runners staying longer and spending locally.”

The marathon is on Aug. 30. Run Perks continues the day after, through Medal Monday on Aug. 31.