This year marked my eighth Geneva Half Marathon–one of Europe’s fastest half marathons–and my sixth time achieving a PB at this race, running 1:17:15.
Whether you’re a local or a tourist, there’s a lot to love about the Geneva Half Marathon, from the course to the scenery to the field of fast amateur runners to the timing in early May. It remains a staple in my annual race calendar, and there’s good reason that it sells out every year.
Changes in 2025
There were two notable changes from the 2024 to 2025 edition – start time and bag dropoff. Fortunately, the organizers moved the start time of the half marathon and marathon a bit earlier to 7:45am and 9am, respectively. Thanks to the early start, conditions for the 2025 edition were excellent, with most Half runners running temperatures between 11° and 15° C. As often happens at this race, the weather proved much warmer than ideal (20°C) for marathon runners later in the day. The only downside of the early start is that crowds were thin for the half marathon, other than around the finish (early Sunday mornings are pretty dead in Geneva).
This year, the organizers kept the bag drop in one place near the finish (Jardin Anglais, 1.2km from the start line) rather than letting runners drop bags close to the start and moving the bag trucks to the finish. This proved a negligible inconvenience for the half marathon – it just meant starting a warmup jog down near the lake instead of up near the start. For marathon runners who’d rather minimize pre-race running and walking, it’s another aspect of this race that’s less than ideal.
The Course
One of the reasons I love the Geneva Half Marathon is that the course is engineered for fast times. The course is 90% flat and 10% downhill (net -44m). The only bits of uphill come in the first 4km and are hardly noticeable, while the middle features a significant 2km downhill from 10.5k to 12.5k the drops runners down to the lake. A long straightaway brings runners from the suburb of Cologny through Eaux Vives, past the iconic Jet d’Eau and into the center of Geneva. From the Jet d’Eau, the energy picks up until the finish with a crescendo of supporters and live music. The race finishes on the flag-draped Pont du Mont Blanc where Lac Leman funnels into the Rhone river. One thing to note about the course, especially since May weather can get warm, is that there is relatively little shade. Other than the start, the tunnel, and stretches in kms 17, 19, and 20, the course is exposed to the sun, so runners need to hydrate accordingly. I throw a cup of water over my head at every aid station to try to stay cool.
In addition to the five aid stations (5k, 9k, 14k, 17k, and 20k), the race is punctuated with live bands, DJs, and supporters with signs and cowbells.
The Field
The race has grown over the last decade, with 6972 half marathon finishers in 2025 and over 25,428 participants across all the races (5k, 10k, wheelchair, half marathon, marathon, marathon relay). This year’s winner, Kenya’s Leonard Kipngeno Bor, ran an impressive 1:01:45, with ten runners finishing under 70 minutes, 47 runners finishing under 75 minutes, and 119 runners finishing under 80 minutes. The top woman was Kenya’s Lucy Nthenya Ndambuki, who finished in 1:08:57. The race has a great mix of men and women, competitive and amateur, old and young, seasoned and newbie. Next year’s race will mark the 20th edition.
Recapping My Race
Coming into this race just four weeks after the Rotterdam Marathon and a training block that was not HM focused, I knew that running a PB this year would take a really strong race. I took the first 3k a bit quicker than planned (3:36/km) before settling into consistent 3:40/km pacing from 4-10km. Opening my stride on the downhill section, I increased my pace to 3:31/km from 11-13km, then reverted back to 3:40/km pace through 18km. As we crossed the river into Paquis, my Garmin GPS got wonky from 19-20km (reading 3:31 for km 19 and 3:49 for km 20 when both were around 3:40). Seeing 3:49 at 20k totally threw me off psychologically and I took my foot off the gas a bit in km 21 thinking that a PB was out of reach. When I turned the final corner onto the bridge, I saw the clock ticking to 1:17 and realized I could narrowly pull off a PB with a strong kick.
In hindsight, considering how gassed I felt around 19-20k, I should have started a few seconds per km more slowly. It’s remarkable how many times we relearn that lesson as runners, but it’s never easy to get pacing 100% right.
Final Thoughts
For locals who have never before run a half marathon, the Geneva Half Marathon represents a great opportunity to tackle the distance for the first time. Likewise, for seasoned runners seeking a half marathon PB, the race is worth putting on the calendar. The flat and downhill course makes this a relatively easy half marathon for newbies and one that experienced runners can take advantage of to target a PB or a qualifying standard.
Overall: 5 – Everyone within striking distance of Geneva should do this race.
Crowd and Vibe: 3 – Fine but not the highlight of this race, especially due to the early start.
Perks & Swag: 4 – Nice Compressport shirt, cool medal, great expo, free public transport, some other perks
Course: 5 – Flat and downhill with long straightaways. Super fast!
Competition: 4 – Not the most competitive HM in Europe, but for a small city this attracts a great field and anyone running over 75 min will have people to run with.
Value: 4 – Registration for 2025 ranged from CHF 59 to 80, depending when you signed up. The race sold out after a couple months, so it pays to signup early.
Run to Lead 
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