Registration for 50th Grandma's Marathon will be a sprint

DULUTH — Anticipating increased interest in 2026 for the historic 50th anniversary of Grandma’s Marathon, organizers have adjusted race capacities.

The changes mean runners will need to sprint to the digital starting line of GrandmasMarathon.com at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 1, when registration opens, to run Grandma’s Marathon, the 36th Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon and the 33rd William A. Irvin 5K.

The capacity of Grandma’s Marathon will increase by 500 entries to 9,500, while a thousand fewer entries will be available for the Bjorklund Half Marathon, which will be capped at 7,000. Both races are scheduled for June 20, 2026.

The Irvin 5K, scheduled for June 19, 2026, has also been reduced by 200 entries to 1,500.

“The marathon will be in a spotlight like never before, and rightfully