Popular thanks to its relatively flat city streets and the historic beauty of its architecture and natural scenery, Washington D.C. plays host each year to the race formerly known as the National Marathon, Half Marathon & Team Relay, which dropped the full marathon in recent years and today is the Rock ‘n’ Roll DC Half Marathon & 5K.
Though the course is (as always) subject to change, the race is set to take runners on a fast and flat route through the streets of the nation’s capital, with lots of views of iconic national monuments like the U.S. Capitol Building, the Washington Monument, the White House, and the U.S. Botanical Gardens.
Runners in both the half and the full marathon share the same race route for most of the half marathon, which starts near the Washington Monument on 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, and finishes near RFK Stadium, along East Capitol Street, and near Anacostia Park.
In between, runners will pass by many of the nation’s capital’s most historic places and monuments, including the Lincoln Memorial, the Arlington Memorial Bridge, and Oak Hill Cemetery.
While most of the course is flat and fast, as any visitor to Washington will be familiar with, there are a few rolling hills that start just before runners reach the mid-way point of the half marathon.
The course rises more than 100 feet quickly as the course runs along the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway between miles 6 and 7, and then slowly descends over the next few miles as runners make their way through the second half of the half marathon.
Walkers are welcome to take part in the half marathon, provided they can complete their 13.1 miles within the 4-hour course time limit.
For runners participating in the full marathon, the course continues on past RFK Stadium and heads toward the Capitol Building and the Library of Congress and then heads across the Mall for long stretches along the Potomac and Anacostia River waterfront areas.
