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Great Owl Running
Aire Marathon & Half Marathon
ShareLocation
Leeds, UK
Date
26th July '26
2 Entry Options
Half Marathon
21.10KM
Run
Marathon
42.20KM
Run
Rating Highlights
Pre-event communication
Event Logistics
Sustainability
All Time Average
2025 Average
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Features & Characteristics
Degree of Challenge
Somewhat challenging
44% of reviews
Atmosphere
Small & Intimate
80% of reviews
Location
Urban & Nature Mix
80% of reviews
Running
Flat & Fast
60% of reviews
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When is Aire Marathon & Half Marathon?
The next edition of Aire Marathon & Half Marathon takes place on 26 July 2026.
Where does Aire Marathon & Half Marathon take place?
Aire Marathon & Half Marathon takes place in Leeds, UK.
What distances does Aire Marathon & Half Marathon offer?
Entry options include: Half Marathon, Marathon.
How is Aire Marathon & Half Marathon rated by runners?
Aire Marathon & Half Marathon has an average rating of 4.17 out of 5 from 26 verified participant reviews on Racecheck.
What is Aire Marathon & Half Marathon like?
Based on participant reviews, runners describe it as: Somewhat challenging (44% of reviews), Small & Intimate (80% of reviews), Urban & Nature Mix (80% of reviews), Flat & Fast (60% of reviews).
Todd R.
Plenty of information in the lead up to the event, nice warm welcome when picking up my bib number & before the start.
The course meant the pack was a bit close for comfort until the end of the first km, but there was plenty of room to manoeuvre and signs directing you as you pr...
Plenty of information in the lead up to the event, nice warm welcome when picking up my bib number & before the start.
The course meant the pack was a bit close for comfort until the end of the first km, but there was plenty of room to manoeuvre and signs directing you as you progressed further.
Great signpost & words of encouragement at the halfway point. (There was a photographer there but the photos haven’t yet appeared on the website)
While the slight uphill finish was less than desirable, the atmosphere was amazing. The medal was nice but the string felt slightly amateurish
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RYAN B.
Excellent event, really enjoyed it. Venue was superb, no traffic, route was very runnable, fairly quiet, nice mix of trail and tarmac paths with lots to see. Route was well marked, although a bit confusing in the odd place and you'd only see arrows at the last minute, but not an ...
Excellent event, really enjoyed it. Venue was superb, no traffic, route was very runnable, fairly quiet, nice mix of trail and tarmac paths with lots to see. Route was well marked, although a bit confusing in the odd place and you'd only see arrows at the last minute, but not an issue if you kept your eyes open.
Turn point was a bit confusing - There wasnt a drink point there as expected, but a few people with bottles of water were further up the path (although they were helpful).
All marshalls/ staff were great and did their best to make things run smoothly.
The final few kilometres and finish were a bit confusing- I was being told my position by some people, but it wasnt clear because of the higher number of half marathon finishers. And on finishing I was asked by staff if I 'placed' but didnt actually know my position until a few days later when I saw the results.
I don't think the medal was needed- it feels very cheap and was handed over like an afterthought. I'd have preferred a cheaper entry or some money going to charity. Tee shirts are nice though.
Event was great overall and I'd definitely come back to run again.
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Daniel C.
Fair play to organising the event and thank you for doing so however would like to raise my constructive points for future participants.
Course - No mention of the several gates this included or the fact there were 2 lots of stairs included. The fact we had to run on many diffe...
Fair play to organising the event and thank you for doing so however would like to raise my constructive points for future participants.
Course - No mention of the several gates this included or the fact there were 2 lots of stairs included. The fact we had to run on many different surfaces also wasnt ideal and advertised. There werent enough sign posts and included lots of us getting slightly lost. For the remaining 8k, i had to use my phone to navigate back, as it was unclear and i was on my own.
There also wasnt enough water stations throughout and i was incredibly dehydrated when I came back.
Medal - It was my first marathon so wanted my medal to be something i proudly looked back on - This wont be the case as it was poor quality with string.
Thanks to the volunteers who helped to make this race happen and all the best for future ones.
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David P.
Getting lost on a marathon was a real low point. As well as running an extra mile, having to stop, asking passers by if they had seen runners, doubling back after missing a turn, this was also down to poor or non existent signing and an almost total lack of marshalls. They cert...
Getting lost on a marathon was a real low point. As well as running an extra mile, having to stop, asking passers by if they had seen runners, doubling back after missing a turn, this was also down to poor or non existent signing and an almost total lack of marshalls. They certainly were not at every point where there might be confusion.
And the worst 'medal ' I ever saw, with just string not even a ribbon.
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Alexander C.
Big thanks to the organisers. A really enjoyable marathon that I was pleased to participate in. It was a friendly atmosphere, a picturesque route and an all round excellent morning's running. It was a very happy morning with a lot of smiles on faces and everyone I spoke to had re...
Big thanks to the organisers. A really enjoyable marathon that I was pleased to participate in. It was a friendly atmosphere, a picturesque route and an all round excellent morning's running. It was a very happy morning with a lot of smiles on faces and everyone I spoke to had really enjoyed the event. Great job. A few slight adaptations would be recommendable moving forward - I was in first place at half way and I reached this point before the steward so it was a bit confusing (but IMO part of the fun and I did have the map provided so it wasn't a big problem at all), perhaps more water stations would be beneficial to the runners and value for money could be better with a goody bag (-runners need to know to bring safety pins for the bib) and prizes for 1st-3rd places would be nice ( though I may have missed this so it could be my error here). Overall, it was an excellent event and one that I am certainly highly recommending to my running community. Despite living abroad, I really hope to attend again and I will be very happy to see the growth of the event. Thank you Aire Marathon, it has been the highlight of my visit home!
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Elsie H.
Everything was well organised, the route was nice and easy to follow with water stations, I would've liked a couple more water stations though especially if it was a bit hotter. I liked the look of the medal! Cool and sustainable. The t-shirt was good quality and looks very nice,...
Everything was well organised, the route was nice and easy to follow with water stations, I would've liked a couple more water stations though especially if it was a bit hotter. I liked the look of the medal! Cool and sustainable. The t-shirt was good quality and looks very nice, however I would've liked the date and 'half marathon' on it to remember the event rather than it just promoting Great Owl Running.
Overall a pleasant and positive experience and will definitely be joining another race organised by you guys again!
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Martin H.
A great, low key, event with a picturesque run alongside the river and canal . Disappointing that the turnround point on the half marathon was so far out , it was a bit demoralising turning round at the check point knowing that this was so over distance.
Pig Love brewing...
A great, low key, event with a picturesque run alongside the river and canal . Disappointing that the turnround point on the half marathon was so far out , it was a bit demoralising turning round at the check point knowing that this was so over distance.
Pig Love brewing as a race HQ works really well, excellent pint and sausage sarnie post rave and was chuffed to bits with winning the mens v55 prize and picking up a smart Inov8 cap.
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Holly M.
Pig love had a nice set up and atmosphere but as the race was measured out incorrectly from what our GPS was tracking, I was too tired to make it to the finish line which meant walking to it and then pretending to run through the finish line. The overall experience was positive a...
Pig love had a nice set up and atmosphere but as the race was measured out incorrectly from what our GPS was tracking, I was too tired to make it to the finish line which meant walking to it and then pretending to run through the finish line. The overall experience was positive and would do it again but I do not think it was advertised correctly.
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Jim M.
Enjoyable race with a good atmosphere and fantastic finish area. Route was fairly straightforward however marshals stationed on corners should be briefed on route and help direct the participants as this would help people stay on course. On one of the turns the marshals were very...
Enjoyable race with a good atmosphere and fantastic finish area. Route was fairly straightforward however marshals stationed on corners should be briefed on route and help direct the participants as this would help people stay on course. On one of the turns the marshals were very supportive however did not give directional guidance and many runners turned the wrong way. Main concern is the fact the half marathon was over 1km too far, should be fine with a remeasure. Aid station could do with a bit more to it if possible. Love the free beer when you finish, this is a great touch.
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Jessica B.
I’m not sure if I went wrong but the distance was out. I got 13.7 miles from start to finish.
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