Overview The Myrtle Beach Marathon sends runners off before sunrise from the Pelicans Ballpark lot on 21st Avenue North, through downtown Myrtle Beach on a flat, USATF-certified course that counts as a Boston Marathon qualifier, and back to the ballpark to finish. The race runs on a Saturday in early March with a full marathon, a half, a wheelchair and handcycle division and an Elite Invitational with prize money for the fastest marathoners in the Southeast; the 2026 weekend also carried a 5K, a family fun run and a virtual 10K. It was first run in 1998. Capstone Event Group produces it, and its 2026 sponsor deck lists it as one of 11 East Coast races, alongside the Charleston Half Marathon, the Tar Heel 10 Miler, the City of Oaks Marathon in Raleigh and the Hamptons Marathon. On site In 2026 the elite field went off at 6:20 a.m., wheelchairs and handcycles at 6:30 and the marathon and half together at 6:35. Roads close and reopen on a rolling basis behind the field, the half course closes at 10 a.m. and the marathon at 1:15 p.m. Runners park free at Broadway at the Beach, about a 15-minute walk from the start. The finish-line festival at the ballpark runs until 1:30 p.m. with local food vendors and retail tents, and every runner leaves with a long-sleeve shirt, a medal and a finisher gift. Sponsor space sits at the finish line and out on the course, plus the expo in years it runs. Audience It is a travel race. Of the runners registered for the 2026 edition, 36.6% lived in South Carolina, 32.7% in North Carolina and 30.7% outside the Carolinas, and the race site steers them to its own plan-your-stay page. Track record Capstone's sponsors speak to the portfolio as a whole. Eric Quimby, director of brand strategy and activation at Blue Cross Blue Shield NC: "Our consumer engagement ratio is the highest of all onsite events we've participated in and 69% higher than that of our NASCAR activation." TJ McGovern, director of sponsorships and events at vineyard vines, called the resort races "best in class events." Brand presence The title partner names the race, fires the starter, holds the finish tape and puts its logo on the bib, the front of the runner shirt and the finisher medal and ribbon; it also chooses the official charity partner and gets first pick of finish-area space and a VIP area. Official sponsors hold category exclusivity, with finish-line and on-course activation space, logos on runner shirts and the finisher truss, PA announcements and sponsored emails and social posts. Visit Myrtle Beach, Vacation Myrtle Beach and WBTW News 13 were listed as official sponsors on the race site in 2026.