First Light Marathon 2027: Run Into the World’s First Sunrise

Spectacular Gisborne coastal scenery, First Light Marathon, Gisborne NZ

Event: First Light Marathon 2027

Date: Saturday, 23 January 2027

Location: Gisborne, New Zealand

Distances: Marathon, Half Marathon & 6km Fun Run

Start Area: Midway Beach / Midway Surf Club

Official website: www.first-light-marathon.com

There are easier marathons in the world.

There are flatter marathons. Faster marathons. Marathons with fewer hills, less sand and considerably less suffering.

But there are very few marathons where the sun rises out of the Pacific Ocean directly in front of you while you run along remote coastline on the edge of New Zealand.

That is what makes the First Light Marathon in Gisborne feel different.

On 23 January 2027, runners from around the world will arrive in Gisborne to tackle one of New Zealand’s most visually spectacular and quietly brutal running events. Starting near Midway Beach before dawn, the course climbs through steep coastal hills, remote trails, beaches and winding Gisborne roads as the first sunrise on earth slowly lights the horizon.

This is not a polished city marathon lined with skyscrapers and corporate banners.

It feels far more adventurous than that.

The event has built an international reputation for combining trail running, travel and culture into a single experience. Runners can choose between the full marathon, half marathon or a 6km fun run, with courses weaving across grassy hills, single-track trails, beach sections and coastal roads around Gisborne.

And Gisborne itself becomes part of the event.

Visitors quickly discover this is not a city obsessed with pace or performance statistics. It is a place where people surf before work, linger over coffee and think nothing of driving muddy utes barefoot after a morning at the beach. During marathon weekend, that relaxed Gisborne atmosphere collides with thousands of nervous runners stretching calves beside the ocean before sunrise.

It creates a strangely memorable energy.

The marathon route is known for its short, steep hills and mixed terrain, with marathon runners facing more than 1,200 metres of elevation gain across the course. But the challenge is precisely what attracts many runners. This is not a marathon people arrive at accidentally.

They come for the experience.

Many international competitors book multi-day travel packages built around the event, combining the race with local food, wineries, coastal excursions and cultural experiences across Gisborne and wider New Zealand.

And even if you are not running?

The weekend still transforms the city.

Expect sunrise crowds along the waterfront, runners jogging through town with compression socks and coffees, beachside celebrations, and an atmosphere that feels part endurance event, part summer festival.

For Gisborne, the First Light Marathon increasingly feels like the kind of event that perfectly matches the city itself.

Beautiful. Relaxed. Slightly wild. And tougher than outsiders expect.