Overview The Oakland Marathon is a one-loop road marathon through the Town that sends its full-marathon field out along the Bay Bridge and back from Yerba Buena Island, and the race calls itself the only marathon in the United States that crosses it. Race weekend adds a half marathon, a 10K, a 5K and a kids' fun run, and the marathon course is USATF and World Athletics certified and qualifies runners for Boston. Run Local Ventures produces it under the line "Run the Town," and the Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation, Stephen and Ayesha Curry's Oakland youth charity, is its beneficiary. On site Start and finish sit at the Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts, with the marathon off at 7 a.m. The loop takes in Little Saigon, three banks of the lake, Grand Avenue past the Grand Lake Theater, Piedmont Avenue, downtown past the Fox Theater, the bridge, and Jack London Square. Thirteen aid stations carry water and electrolytes, some with gels, and local entertainers and cheer stations work the downtown stretch. Turf Inc ran the pre-race warmup in 2026, and Mistah FAB, JWalt and DJ Shellheart played the Finish Line Festival. In 2026 the two-day Health and Wellness Expo ran inside the Kaiser Center before race day. Audience Oakland, San Francisco, Berkeley, Hayward and Alameda sent the most runners in 2026, and the field also came from 39 states and 20 countries. More than 500 teams registered that year. The week before the race is Oakland Running Week, when local running crews host community runs across the East Bay, from Snow Park to REI Berkeley. Talent and Influencers Desiree Linden, the 2018 Boston Marathon champion, took questions at the 2026 expo. Under Armour's Velociti Elite Team came back in 2026 with comped entries, racing gear and prize purses for the top finishers. Ryuji Mano won the 2026 marathon in 2:30:58 and Andrea Deutsche the women's race in 2:52:56. Track record The 2026 race was the 17th, and it drew a record 11,100-plus participants, up 65% on 2023, with about 1,000 volunteers. It raised more than $150,000 for Eat. Learn. Play., roughly $130,000 from event proceeds and over $20,000 in runner donations. Brand presence Kaiser Permanente presented the 2026 race, with its name on the marathon and the kids' fun run. Under Armour made the finisher's long-sleeve tech tee and fields the elite team, GU gels and Voli Hydration drinks stock the aid stations, and Zenni, PLEZi, Fremont Bank and Visit Oakland were among the 2026 official sponsors. The expo puts health and wellness vendors and Oakland's sports teams in front of every runner collecting a packet, and partners are sold at title, presenting, official and community level.