The big change this year for the Cork City Marathon is that it will be held on a Sunday rather than the usual Bank Holiday Monday. One effect from this change is that the route has to avoid some churches so some changes had to be made.
While the overall route is much the same, there are three areas where there have been changes...
The start and finish is still on Patrick's Street but the route has been changed.
As in previous years, the marathon starts on Patrick's Street, down the Grand Parade, down the South Mall....across Parnell Place...and down Merchant's Quay. In previous years, it went down to the North Gate Bridge and back up
Popes Quay before going up to Blackpool. This year, it will cross the
bridge by the Opera House and head north.
As for the finish, in previous years it went down Pope's Quay, across Patrick's Bridge and down to the finish on Patrick's Street. In 2017, it will cross the North Gate Bridge and down North Gate Street. Up Washington Street, onto the Grand Parade and onto Patrick's Street.
Verdict : Neutral. No real difference. The route is as flat as before.
In Ballyphehane, the church has to be avoided. This will result in a detour by Tory Top Park.
Anyone who knows this area will know that this is probably the highest part of Ballyphehane.
Verdict : Negative. The old route along here in Orange was pretty flat. The 2017 route introduces a new hill which won't be welcome at 19 miles.
The church at Dennehy's Cross must also be avoided. This is probably the biggest change. You can see the new route in red and the old route in orange.
With the old route, runners lost height by the junction with Clashduv Road and then had to climb out again. At the exit of Liam Lynch park where it came out by the Credit Union, the route went down slightly to Dennehy's Cross.
The new route loses a fair bit of height as it is close to Victoria Cross.
Verdict : Neutral. Lose a bit here, gain a bit there. Both the new and old routes have their drags.
Overall: The new route is much the same as previous years. The extra hill in Ballyphehane may well add a minute to people's times.
Half-Marathon : The loop at the start which caused all the problems last year is gone and it now starts near Kennedy Park. It joins the marathon route on the Marina so the changes in Ballyphehane and Glasheen will apply.
The Cork City Marathon website is
http://www.corkcitymarathon.ie
