Ravenna Marathon 2026: tracking, the old-town loops and the canal to Punta Ravenna

The Maratona di Ravenna Città d'Arte runs on Sunday 8 November 2026, starting at 9:15 from the Pala De André on Viale Europa (official 42K page, regulations). The course is flat, 42.195 km, and passes all eight of Ravenna's UNESCO World Heritage monuments: the port and the old town first, then south to Sant'Apollinare in Classe, out along a canal towards the sea and back to a finish on Via di Roma. If you have a runner in it, here's how to see where they are during the race, where to stand in the old town to catch them more than once, and how to reach them on the canal, the quietest part of the day.

Independence notice: Cheerlify is an independent service. It is not affiliated with the Maratona di Ravenna Città d'Arte organisers (Ravenna Runners Club) or sponsors, and it is not the event's official application.

The race at a glance

Runners are put in five start pens by declared finish time, from "Oro" (under 2:30) to "Rossa" (4:15 to 6:30), and the whole field goes on the 9:15 gun. The organisers' passage-time table allows about ten minutes for the back of the field to cross the start line (passage times).

Time zone: Italy is back on winter time (UTC+1) by race day. If you're following from the UK, Ireland or Portugal, the start is at 8:15 your time; from Finland or Greece, 10:15.

1. Official tracking: chip timing and results on ENDU

The chip is fixed to the back of the bib, and under the regulations the official time runs from the gun, not from when your runner crosses the start line. Results go up on ENDU and on the official site (regulations, FAQ). On 20 October there was still no live-tracking app and no list of intermediate timing points, and the regulations and the FAQ still name different timing companies (the FAQ says Detecht). Check the official site in race week to see how live splits will be shown, and look your runner up by name or bib number once the results page goes live.

The chip time is the official one, and nothing else is as precise. What it can't do is fill the gaps. It only knows where your runner was at the last mat, so between two mats you're looking at an old reading, with no idea when they'll reach the corner you're standing on. We explain the difference in chip timing vs GPS tracking.

2. Live GPS on the map, between the readings

Since Ravenna hasn't named a live-tracking app, the runner's own phone is the most reliable way to get a moving dot: Strava Beacon, Garmin LiveTrack, plain location sharing or Cheerlify (marathon tracking apps compared). Cheerlify places the dot on the course, so you see which kilometre they're on and get an arrival estimate for any point. In Ravenna that's how you know whether there's time for a coffee at Piazza del Popolo before they come round again, or when to start walking to Via di Roma for the finish.

Tip: the chip results tell you the official time afterwards; the GPS dot tells you when to look up the street.

The course, stage by stage

From the organisers' passage-time table, which gives a street for every kilometre, and their street list. Where a place falls between two kilometre marks, we placed it on the course map, so treat those kilometres as approximate:

The first half is busy: the port, the park, then the old town, with narrow streets and one monument after another. After Classe the course leaves town, and from km 27 the runners are on a straight road beside a canal, three kilometres out and three back, with little to look at and hardly anyone watching. That stretch comes just as most runners are starting to run low, which is why we'd send a familiar voice there.

Where to watch

The organisers don't publish official cheering zones, so these are our suggestions, based on the course:

• The Darsena, behind the railway station (about km 2, km 10–11 and km 34–36). The course runs along the old harbour basin early, comes back after the park and returns again in the last 10 km. It's next to the station, so it's easy to get to.
• Piazza del Popolo and Piazza dei Caduti per la Libertà (about km 12.5, then km 14–15.5): the old-town loops bring the runners through Piazza del Popolo and then three times through Piazza dei Caduti, a two-minute walk to the south (street list). Stand between the two squares and you can see them several times in twenty minutes.
• The Pala De André (about km 27, then km 33). The start area is also where the canal stretch begins and ends; out on the canal itself you'll find very few spectators.
• The finish on Via di Roma, about 700 metres from Piazza dei Caduti. Your runner still has 27 km to go when they leave the old town, so you have plenty of time to walk over. Bags are collected on Viale Santi Baldini, and medals are engraved at Piazzale Segurini after the finish (FAQ). Agree on a meeting point near one of them beforehand.

Ravenna's centre is small enough to walk everywhere. It's also a limited-traffic zone with cameras, so don't drive into it. On race morning the organisers run a shuttle from Viale Pallavicini in the centre to the Pala De André, and after the race from the finish area back to the Pala De André (FAQ). Following from home works too: the GPS dot and the cheers don't care where you are.

Weather

Early November in Ravenna is usually cool, and the Po plain often has morning fog and damp, grey days. If you'll be on the roadside for hours, wear layers, and check the forecast on Saturday.

Be in their ears on the Canale Molinetto

At km 27 the race leaves the crowds behind and turns onto the Via Destra Canale Molinetto: a straight road beside the water, three kilometres out to Punta Ravenna, a turn, and three kilometres back on the other bank. It looks much the same in both directions, and the old town feels a long way off.

With Cheerlify you can send a voice or video message while they're running, and it plays in their earbuds right away. You can also record one in advance and pick the kilometre, and it plays when they get there. Their music goes quiet for your message and comes back after. Where we'd put them:

• km 27, onto the canal: "Six kilometres of canal. Three out, three back. Count them down."
• km 30, the turn at Punta Ravenna: "That's the far end. Every step from here takes you home."
• km 41, on Via di Roma: something only you can say to them.

Neither the regulations nor the FAQ has a rule on music or headphones. With one earbud, or open-ear headphones, your runner hears the cheer clearly and can still hear the marshals.

For the runner: in the Cheerlify app, pick Maratona di Ravenna from the race catalog. The official course is already loaded, so you don't need a GPX file. Share the link and the code with your supporters. Running the half? Pick Mezza Maratona di Ravenna Città d'Arte instead: it has its own course, so the map, the kilometres and the arrival times follow the 21.1 km.

Supporters don't need an app or an account, only the link and the code in a browser. If the family is split between Ravenna and home, each of you can send your own, live or set for a different kilometre. For ideas, here are 30+ cheering lines for every stage of a race.

Race-week checklist for supporters

1. Your runner's bib number and start pen saved. Everyone starts at 9:15; the back of the field crosses the line about ten minutes later.
2. You know where the results will be (ENDU and the official site), and you've checked the official site in race week for live splits.
3. Your runner has sent you their GPS tracking link, and you tested it on Friday or Saturday at the expo.
4. Their phone starts fully charged, battery saver off, location permission set to "Always".
5. Cheers ready: at least one for the canal (km 27–33) and one for the finish, plus your phone at hand to send one live.
6. If you're there: you've picked your spots (the Darsena and the old town, then the finish), you're going on foot, and you've agreed on a meeting point after the finish.

Frequently asked questions