Ottawa welcomes over 40,000 participants – Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend 2026: Sold out in the capital!

May 19, 2026 (Ottawa, ON) — Ottawa is getting ready to welcome more than 40,000 participants and 2,500 volunteers over two action-packed days.

With sellouts in every event: Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon, Ottawa Half Marathon presented by Desjardins, Ottawa 10K presented by Otto’s Ottawa, and the 5K, 2K, and Ottawa Kids Marathon, the capital of Canada has become the capital of running.

The Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend’s Running & Fitness Expo, May 21-23, is back and bigger than ever! Free and open to the public, this vibrant three-day event will feature more than 55 exhibitors showcasing the latest in wellness, sports gear, nutrition, and more. Friday and Saturday’s Stage Schedule features panel discussions, guest speakers, a fashion show, and course previews.

Located at the Carleton University Fieldhouse, 1125 Colonel By Drive, the Expo is also the official bib pickup for all participants. Expo hours are:

• Thursday, May 21, 4:00 pm – 9:00 pm
• Friday, May 22, from 9:00 am – 9:00 pm
• Saturday, May 23, from 8:00 am – 6:00 pm

Media Launch and Elite Conference

Hosted by Randy Ferguson, all media are invited to attend the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend Media Launch and Elite Conference on Friday, May 22, 2026, 9:00 a.m.* The launch will take place at the main stage at the Running and Fitness Expo, at the Carleton University Fieldhouse.

Special guests will include: Mayor Mark Sutcliffe, Ottawa Hospital Foundation fundraiser Grace Kennedy, 100-year-old Roy Allen, and the great-great-grandson of Tom Longboat, Kristian Jamieson —please see their story summaries below.  An Elite Panel Q&A will follow:

Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon panel:

• Rory Linkletter
• Natasha Wodak
• Anna Dibaba
• Kristian Jamieson 

Canadian 10K Championship panel:

• Ben Flanagan
• Florence Caron
• Thomas Fafard
• Erin Mawhinney

All media are invited to attend the launch. *Please note the earlier start time of 9:00 a.m. If you require media accreditation for the weekend itself, please contact media@runottawa.ca.

Who, when, and where to watch

2026 Canadian 10K Championships

On Saturday, May 23, 5:45 pm, the Athletics Canada Canadian 10K Championships welcomes Canada’s most distinguished athletes including distance runners Ben Flanagan and Erin Mawhinney as well as two of Quebec’s top athletes, Florence Caron and Thomas Fafard.

Ben Flanagan will be looking to reclaim the Canadian 10K record. He originally set the mark in 2024 at Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend before Charles Philibert-Thiboutot broke it in 2025. The time to beat now stands at 28:06.

See the full Athletics Canada Canadian 10K Championships start list

Watch it LIVE on Run Ottawa’s youtube channel starting at 5:30pm.

The 52nd edition of the World Athletics Label Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon

On Sunday, May 24, two of Canada’s most accomplished long distance runners, Natasha Wodak and Rory Linkletter, will headline the elite field at the newly-titled 2026 Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon.

See the full World Athletics Elite Label Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon start list

Watch it LIVE on Run Ottawa’s youtube channel starting at 6:50 am.

 

Road closures: Getting around the National Capital Region

On Saturday, May 23 and Sunday, May 24, several road closures will be in effect. The organizers of Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend 2026 and the City of Ottawa, Ottawa Police Service, Ville de Gatineau, and Service de police de la Ville de Gatineau work together to minimize road closures, and keep traffic moving.

Please see www.runottawa.ca/roadclosures for road closures and exit strategy details.

2026 Startline Announcers

Participants and spectators are in good hands with Canadian and internationally acclaimed host Randy Ferguson. As announcer for Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend 2026, Ferguson brings a wealth of experience – from Olympic Games to World Championships—he has hosted some of the greatest sporting events of our era.

On Saturday May 23, Ferguson will share host duties with:

1:00 p.m. Ottawa Kids Marathon – Natalie Van Rooy (CTV Ottawa)

3:00 p.m. Ottawa 2K – Tanaeya Taylor (Pure Country 94)

4:00 p.m. Ottawa 5K – Jeff Hopper (MOVE 100)

5:45 pm Canadian 10K Championship and Ottawa 10K presented by Otto’s Ottawa– Gord St. Denis (PURE 94)

And on Sunday, May 24, Ferguson’s co-hosts will be:

7:00 a.m. Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon –  Austin Lee (CTV Ottawa)

9:00 a.m.  Ottawa Half Marathon presented by Desjardins  – Rosey Edeh (CTV Your Morning Ottawa)

Participant highlights

• Kristian Jamieson, the great-great-grandson of Tom Longboat, will line up in the elite field at Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon on Sunday, May 24. Last month, Kristian ran the 2026 Boston Marathon in 2:33, and he now has his sights set on something extraordinary: coming to Ottawa to break his great-great-grandfather’s Boston Marathon record of 2:24:24 on Canadian soil.
• Roy Allen is 100 years old—and on May 23, he’s about to do something no Canadian his age has ever done before: walk a 5K in an official race and set a Canadian and World Record. Allen understands the importance of staying socially active as you age. That’s why Allen’s 5K is also a fundraiser supporting four organizations serving seniors in Ottawa, including the Gloucester 50+ Centre, Perley Health Foundation, The Dementia Society, and the Council on Aging of Ottawa. Allen will be walking with his children and grandchildren.
• Mayor Mark Sutcliffe will be participating in Sunday’s Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon, taking 40,000 steps towards ending youth homelessness. Sutcliffe’s Ending Youth Homelessness in Ottawa by 2023 Fund supports community-led efforts to ensure every young person in our city has access to safe and stable housing.
• At 13, Sudarshan Gautam lost both his arms in a life-altering accident. While some people may have retreated, Gautam became a powerful voice, advocate, and leader for disability awareness – becoming the first person without arms to summit Mount Everest. Gautam will bring his unstoppable determination to the Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon with the message that greatness isn’t defined by what we lack, but by who we choose to be.
• This year, start lines at Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend will carry a deeper meaning as Indigenous women from Native Women Run take part. Grounded in the movement’s “Run the Land” philosophy, these runners bring a powerful blend of culture, community, and visibility to one of Canada’s largest race events. Their participation reflects a broader shift in sport—where representation, connection, and wellness take center stage. 
• Quebec MP Eric St-Pierre will attempt a first by completing the Ottawa Half Marathon presented by Desjardins, dressed in a custom-made Peace Tower costume. St-Pierre says the idea came from wanting to mark his first year as an MP in a fun and memorable way while bringing smiles and laughter to runners and spectators along the course. The Peace Tower costume is designed by Vestech Pro, a company located in St-Pierre’s riding, and the costume designer for Cirque du Soleil.
• Lindsay Blair is running in support of Interval House of Ottawa. As Executive Director of 2B Developments and project manager for Interval House’s new housing initiative, Blair has seen the organization’s impact up close. Blair will be running the Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon to raise awareness and support for survivors rebuilding their lives and the growing need for safe shelter and accessible housing.
• Mind Over Miles was founded in 2021 and since then, The Ottawa Hospital team has raised over $45,000 in support of mental health. Funds raised will help ensure that those navigating some of the most difficult moments of their lives receive the compassionate, high-quality care they deserve. Team Captain, Grace Kennedy, will run for Inpatient and Psychiatric Emergency Services, while her counterparts on the team will represent other elements of mental health care at the hospital – friendly competition for an excellent cause.

Eighty-seven local and national charities are taking part in the Desjardins Charity Challenge. This year marks a major milestone for the Desjardins Charity Challenge: $10M dollars in funds raised by runners and their supporters since its inception in 2015. Learn more about the Desjardins Charity Challenge and the 2026 participating charities.

Ottawa boasts the largest number of Cheer Stations on a marathon route!

Nobody turns up and cheers louder than Ottawa fans. Come out and support the runners at a cheer station near you. Pick up an official cowbell and help bring the energy to the course. This year, 28 Cheer Stations will line the routes of the Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon and Ottawa Half Marathon, presented by Desjardins—offering countless opportunities to support runners and be part of the excitement. See the 2026 Cheer Station map! 

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Ottawa 2K goes green-er!

In 2025, Run Ottawa and EnviroCentre in collaboration with the City of Ottawa’s Community Environmental Projects Grant Program piloted a reusable cup program at Run to Empower 5K. We are pleased to announce that this initiative is now being rolled out on a much larger scale at the Ottawa 2K at Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend 2026.

This change helps eliminate the use of more than 3,000 single-use cups. Studies show that reuse is more sustainable than recycling because it keeps items in their original form, avoiding the energy and resources required for processing, transportation, and remanufacturing.

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1,900 participants in the Ottawa Kids Marathon 

The excitement begins on Saturday, May 23 at 1:00 p.m., as more than 1,900 young runners take part in the Ottawa Kids Marathon, officially kicking off the weekend’s events. But before the kids hit the course, the fun starts with a 100m dash featuring five spirited local mascots! Cheering from the sidelines—and racing to the finish—will be Lulu (Farm Boy), Cappy (Ottawa Titans), Cuddles (CHEO), OC Owl (OC Transpo), OG (Ottawa BlackJacks), and Misquah Moose (Camp Misquah).

Leading up to the weekend, 1,100 kids participated in a Kids Run Ottawa School Program, running 41 kilometres in advance of Saturday’s event.

Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend is Canada’s most popular race weekend and will run on May 23-24, 2026. You can learn more by visiting runottawa.ca.

Karie Ford
media@runottawa.ca

 

About Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend

Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend is Canada’s largest running and walking festival with six races, including the Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon, Ottawa Half Marathon presented by Desjardins, Ottawa 10K presented by Otto’s Ottawa, Ottawa 5K, Ottawa 2K, and Ottawa Kids Marathon, as well as three multi-event challenges. In 2025, runners and walkers in the event raised $969,602.02 for local and national charities through the Desjardins Charity Challenge.

Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend is one of two running events in Canada to host a World Athletics label marathon, and is host to Athletics Canada’s Canadian 10K Championships. The weekend was named Event of the Year at the 2019 Canadian Tourism Awards, and in 2020, its title sponsor Tamarack Homes won Sport Tourism Canada’s Canadian Sport Event Sponsorship Initiative of the Year Award.