2018 ASB Auckland Marathon: What’s happening on the day

Over 15,000 runners, walkers and (for the first time) wheelchair athletes of all ages and abilities will line up across the five events on offer at the 2018 ASB Auckland Marathon on Sunday morning. This year runners from as far afield as Great Britain, Germany, China, Malaysia, Japan and Australia will join the thousands of Kiwis on course.

First away on Sunday morning is the pilot wheelchair marathon, with the gun going at 5:55am on King Edward Parade in Devonport, with the first finishers expected over the line in Victoria Park in just under two hours.

The ASB Auckland Marathon will again raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity, with ASB supporting the Charity Hero programme, encouraging runners to sign up to one of the official Charity Hero partner charities and do all they can to raise money for that cause. The total raised so far is close to $800,000, leaving a wonderful legacy in the community long after the runners have left the bridge behind for another year.

For this year's event, we've also launched the ASB Marathon Effort. This means for every minute a participant is on course, we’ll match it with a minute of our own volunteer work. If enough Kiwis get involved, the community will benefit from thousands of hours of community service. To sign up visit:  www.asbmarathoneffort.co.nz

There is plenty of activity on the course to spur on runners and entertain supporters and our team will be there on the day!

On-course activations to look out for:

ASB Japanese drummers will be located before the Auckland Harbour Bridge and again at Judges Bay to encourage runners and give that extra push of adrenalin as they approach the bridge. This year we’ve also got Polynesian performers located on the corner of Lake Road in Takapuna.

Also keep an eye out for our main supporter zone, which is located at Jellicoe Street and will be filled with music and dancing, accompanied by a local DJ.  We’ll have plenty of the ASB supporters on Jellicoe St too – give them a high five!

Once runners have made it to the finish line, ASB customers who raced in the ASB Auckland Marathon event will be able to relax and recover in the ASB home base at Victoria Park. Pop your ASB sticker from the Expo onto your race bib or show your ASB card at the door. We’ve got a complimentary food and drinks and free massage stations to pamper your tired legs - so runners will be back to pre-race energy levels in no time.

Good luck to everyone participating in the 2018 ASB Auckland Marathon. Post your photos from the day on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter using #AucklandMarathon and we’ll look forward to seeing you at the finish line.