Mayor’s Message - Friday 26 April 2024

This weekend we host the inaugural Ballarat Marathon! We are honoured to be hosting this world-class road running festival.  

Our city is a proud sporting city with a rich history of distance running. The Ballarat Marathon will showcase our beautiful and historic city and promote the health and well-being of our community.  

This event is not just great for encouraging and increasing physical activity in Ballarat – it is also important for tourism in our city.  

It is expected to attract more than 5,000 visitors here this weekend, contribute over $1 million to our economy and raise important funds for charity.

Over two days our city will be a hive of activity, with races being held on both days. The headline marathon and half marathon will be on Sunday.  

Armstrong Street South, between Town Hall and Myer, will be transformed into the Ballarat Marathon Expo. It will feature merchandise, presentations and event partners. There will even be an engraver on hand to engrave the finishers medals.  

The Sovereign Hill Redcoat Soldiers will start the marathon and half marathon and the Kryal Castle’s Queen of Hearts will present awards.  

Our city will be buzzing, with extended CBD cafe opening hours across the weekend, and participating hospitality venues will be offering the Ballarat Marathon Pasta Party in the lead up to the race.  

A major component of the Ballarat Marathon is fundraising for charity. It’s pleasing to see more than $60,000 raised for multiple charities and that number is expected to climb even after the event.  

I am looking forward to some great running - and to all the runners, thank you, have fun and good luck for the event, and if you are not competing, I encourage you to get out, explore Ballarat and cheer the runners on.

- Mayor Cr Des Hudson