Berlin Marathon: How to watch, elite lists, and who are the athletes

The BMW Berlin Marathon will take place this Sunday, September 27, in Germany’s capital city. Below you will find the complete elite list and ways to watch the marathon in your jurisdiction.

Former world record-holder Tigst Assefa of Ethiopia, who ran 2:11:53 in Berlin in 2023, plus a long list of international athletes will take to the streets.

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*Editor’s note: While Sabastian Sawe is pictured above, he is now no longer racing due to injury.

The women’s race has been bolstered by European champion Alisa Vainio from Finland, while Tanzanian Gabriel Geay, Ethiopians Getaneh Molla, Guye Adola and Shura Kitata are among the leading men.

A top master runner is Ethiopian distance-running legend and two-time Berlin champion Kenenisa Bekele will race. See the full elite fields listed below.

Men’s elite field

On Sunday, seven men will start who hold personal bests un 2:05:00. Greater than 30 have run sub-2:09:00.

Adola has run well in Berlin. On his debut, he finished in 2:03:46 in 2017 to finish second behind Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge. Adola returned to win in 2021 in 2:05:45. He won the Rotterdam Marathon in 2:03:54 earlier this year.

Molla owns a personal best of 2:03:34, Kitata 2:03:59 in February this year in a virtual tie with Asrar Hiyrden who were given the same finish time. Selemon Barega could also challenge for a top-three position as he looks to improve on his marathon best of 2:05:00.

Bekele returns to a race he has won twice, clocking 2:03:03 in 2016 before narrowly missing the world record with his 2:01:41 run in 2019. Now age 44, the former Olympic champion and long-time 5000m and 10,000m world record-holder will simply add legend and prestige to the race.

The field includes 14 Japanese athletes with personal bests between approximately 2:06 and 2:08, providing greater depth. The Japanese will likely work in teams and may perform well collectively as the Asian country has a rich history of distance running.

Sebastian Hendel is the fastest German entrant with 2:07:33. He ran that time in Berlin two years ago. Hendel will be joined by countryman Haftom Welday, who improved to 2:08:13 in Barcelona in March. Marathon debutant Aaron Bienenfeld and Johannes Motschmann round out the domestic squad.

Bienenfeld made an impressive debut in Hamburg in April, running 2:08:47, which is the fastest marathon debut ever by a German athlete.

Women’s elite field

Ethiopian Tigst Assefa will win. The 2:11:53 runner, Ruth Cheptegei, would like to take the world record back from Kenyan Ruth Cheptegei who won Chicago in 2024 clocking 2:09:56.

The former 800m runner went on to win the 2022 race in 2:15:37 before breaking the world record with 2:11:53 the following year—those leaps forward raised eyebrows at the time.

Defending champion Rosemary Wanjiru from Kenya is expected to provide Assefa’s strongest opposition. She finished second on her Berlin debut in 2022 with 2:18:00 and returned to win last year’s race in difficult, hot conditions. Her personal best of 2:16:14 makes her the second-fastest woman in the field.

The battle for top 10 and sub-2:20:00 includes Ethiopia’s Bedatu Hirpa, Dera Dida and and Zeineba Yimer.

Hirpa has won the Dubai and Paris marathons and owns a best of 2:18:27, while Dida has run 2:18:32 and narrowly missed victory in Berlin last year. Yimer has a best of 2:18:47 when finishing in third place in Barcelona in March.

European champion Vainio is another notable late addition. The Finn won the European title in a championship record time of 2:22:26 and set a national record of 2:20:39 with her victory in Seville earlier this year.

Eight women in the field have broken 2:20:00, with another eight holding personal bests under 2:23:00. If the weather holds, they should all clock 2:20:00 or faster.

Esther Pfeiffer is Germany’s top entry. She is racing just her second marathon after winning her 2023 debut in Cologne in 2:37:00. Since then, she has run a 1:07:25 half marathon in Berlin in March. She should approach 2:22:00 on Sunday.

Men

Women

Berlin will once again host some of the top international distance runners on Sunday, 27 September 2026, for the 52nd edition of the BMW Berlin Marathon. Known for its flat, fast course and history of world records, race organizers look forward to another exciting edition through Germany’s capital city.

How to watch

The 2026 BMW Berlin Marathon will be shown live on television and digital platforms worldwide. Coverage is scheduled to begin at 8:30am Central European Summer Time (GMT+2).

Below is the full list of broadcasters by country and region:

FloTrack: USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand
YouTube: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein
RTL: Germany
Olympic Channel: (Albania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova, Norway, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, UAE, Yemen, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan)
Charlton: Israel
CT Sports: Czech Republic
NTV: Kenya
Supersport: Africa
ESPN: South America and the Carribean
Arena Sport: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia
DAZN: Belgium
L’Equipe: France
Sport TV: Portugal

Race day schedule

Time (CEST) Time (GMT) Event
8:20am 6:20am Elite handbike race
8:26am 6:26am Elite wheelchair race
8:29am 6:29am Additional handbike and wheelchair races
8:45am 6:45am Marathon runners – first of six starting waves