Daegu city announced Monday that it will overhaul the 2027 Daegu Marathon, shifting the course to the city center and opening registration by event category starting Oct. 12.
The city will move the start and finish from Daegu Stadium to the National Debt Redemption Movement Memorial Park, routing runners along Dalgubeol-daero and past major landmarks. The redesigned course loops through the Jonggak intersection, Gamsam Station and Sinmae Station areas — a significant shift from the previous outskirts-focused layout to one centered on the urban core.
To strengthen safety and operational efficiency, the city will also reduce the field from 40,000 to 32,000 participants.
The start time will be moved up an hour, from 9 a.m. to 8 a.m., to minimize traffic disruptions for residents.
Last year, 700,000 users flooded the registration website on the first day, causing access failures. In response, the city will significantly expand server capacity and stagger registration and payment schedules by event category to spread the load.
"Just as our slogan — 'A Century of Racing, Daegu's Road' — suggests, we will do our utmost to hold a safe and substantive event so that the 2027 Daegu Marathon becomes Daegu's signature sports festival as it strides toward a new century," said Hwang Bo-ran, director of Daegu's culture, sports and tourism bureau.
kbj7653@heraldcorp.com
