Madrid Marathon 2027 fueling guide: aid stations, hills, start time and a plan for every finish time

The Madrid Marathon gives you 10 aid stations on the course, at 5, 10.5, 16, 20, 25, 29, 32, 35.8, 38 and 40 km, each with water and Powerade, plus bananas at three of them, guava bites at one, and a single 226ERS gel point. You also get two 226ERS gels and a bar in your Fuel Bag at the expo. That is a solid base, but it is not a full plan: for most runners, at least half of the carbohydrate still has to come with you from the start on Paseo de la Castellana. This guide lists what the organizer has published, when you will reach each station at your pace, and three plans to choose from.

Two things make Madrid different from most big-city marathons. The course is hilly for a city race: it climbs to 731 m in the first 4 km, drops to about 575 m by the river, and finishes with a long climb of about 70 m over the last 5 km. And the city sits at about 650 m, in a dry climate where late-April mornings start cool and afternoons warm up fast. The 2027 start time is not announced yet. Everything below uses the organizer’s current 2027 regulations, FAQ and course map, plus last edition’s start time and elevation profile. Recheck them in race week.

Madrid Marathon 2027: the confirmed race facts

The cut-offs are clock times, not a net time limit. The broom vehicle leaves km 0 at 10:15 and moves at 9:00 per km, so halfway closes at 13:24:52, 30 km at 14:45, and the finish at 16:34:45. If the first wave goes at about 08:45 again, runners crossing the line in the first half hour have more than seven hours. The rule that matters is to stay ahead of that 9:00 per km schedule. If the closing car catches you, the organizer says you can speed up or take the sweep vehicle to the finish.

What is on the Madrid Marathon course

Aid stations are called avituallamientos in Spanish. This table follows the official 2027 course map and regulations. Each station also has toilets, and the 2027 map adds Vithas runner-assistance points at the stations.

Two details need a recheck. The FAQ places the 226ERS gel point at the km 30 station, while the official map draws it at the 32 km station, and the regulations list no station at 30 km. Plan as if it sits somewhere from 30 to 32 km, and do not let your plan depend on it. The FAQ also lists bananas at 23, 29 and 38 km, but the map shows them at the 25, 29 and 38 km stations, since there is no station at 23 km. The organizer says it may move stations for operational reasons and will confirm changes in the final instructions sent about two weeks before the race.

Powerade is your steady top-up. Coca-Cola Spain lists its regular Powerade flavours at 5 g of carbohydrate and 0.13 g of salt per 100 ml. The organizer does not say which flavour, or whether a sugar-free version is served. A cup of 100 to 150 ml gives roughly 5 to 7.5 g of carbohydrate, less what you spill. Ten stations add up to about 50 to 75 g across the whole race, which is about one hour of fuel for most runners. Count it as a top-up, not your plan.

When you will reach each station at your pace

The table shows elapsed time from your own start at an even pace. Madrid is not an even-pace course, so expect to be a little slower than this on the first 4 km and the last 5 km, and a little faster on the long downhill stretches. A 3:30 runner reaches the gel point at about 2:39. A 5:00 runner reaches it at about 3:48 and starts the final climb at about 4:25.

Pick your plan: three runner profiles

World Athletics’ consensus statement gives 30 to 60 g of carbohydrate per hour as the usual marathon range, and its companion paper on distance runners suggests trained runners try up to 90 g per hour in events longer than about two and a half hours. Research on multiple transportable carbohydrates shows that intakes above 60 g per hour are only absorbed well when the product mixes glucose and fructose and the gut has been trained for it. So here are three honest profiles. With 25 g gels, one every 30 minutes gives 50 g per hour, every 25 minutes gives 60 g, and every 20 minutes gives 75 g.

Racing it: your problem is volume and the hills. At 75 g per hour from gels alone, a 3:00 race needs nine 25 g gels. The two Fuel Bag gels can replace two of them if you have trained with that brand. Powerade at race pace is often half spilled, so count no more than a few grams per cup. Build your number over eight to ten weeks of long runs, starting at 60 g and adding 10 to 15 g every second week while your stomach stays quiet. Take the first gel at about 20 minutes, near the 5 km station, and the last one by about 37 km, before the climb from Madrid Río to Recoletos.

Steady marathon: think in grams. A 4:00 race at 60 g per hour is 240 g. Ten cups of Powerade cover perhaps 50 to 75 g of that, and the course gel may add one more. That leaves about six or seven carried 25 g gels, or one every 25 to 30 minutes. Two of those can be your Fuel Bag gels. Do not skip fuel on the long downhill from Plaza de Castilla to Sol because you feel good; the work you save there is what gets you up the last 5 km.

Long day: five to six hours on your feet changes the math. Fifty grams per hour over six hours is 300 g, and the course covers only a part of it. Small, frequent doses work best: a gel every 30 minutes, or half a gel every 15, with a piece of banana at 25, 29 or 38 km, or a guava bite at 35.8 km, when a gel feels like too much. Keep an eye on the broom schedule. If you start at about 09:15 and run 6:00, you pass 30 km at about 13:30, more than an hour ahead of the 14:45 closing. Eating on schedule in the first three hours is what keeps you moving on the final climb.

Caffeine and sodium on the Madrid course

• Caffeine: the ISSN position stand supports 3 to 6 mg per kg taken about 60 minutes before exercise. For a 70 kg runner, 3 mg per kg is 210 mg. For an 08:45 start, that means about 07:45, while you wait in your start box.
• Check the Fuel Bag gels at the expo. The organizer does not list the flavours, and some gels contain caffeine. Read the label before you count them in your caffeine total.
• The same applies to the course gel point: if a caffeinated flavour is offered, decide in advance whether you want it.
• Sodium: Powerade lists 0.13 g of salt per 100 ml, about 52 mg of sodium, so a cup gives only about 50 to 80 mg. The course has no salty food. Salty sweaters on a warm day may want a tested salt product, roughly 300 to 600 mg of sodium per hour in total.
• Bananas and guava bites are useful sugar, but they will not replace a gel’s worth of carbohydrate unless you eat a lot, which is hard on a climb.
• Tear the top of your gel before the station, so you can drink with the same hand.

Hydration for a late-April morning in Madrid

At the end of April, Madrid averages a daily high near 19 °C (67 °F) and a low near 8 °C (46 °F), with about a 23 percent chance of a wet day and almost no muggy days. Sunrise is a little after 07:15. So the start is usually cool, and the race warms up as it goes: a 3:00 runner finishes before noon, while a 6:00 runner is still out in the early afternoon. The air is dry and the city sits at about 650 m, so sun and wind can dry you out faster than the temperature suggests. World Athletics warns against drinking more than you sweat; finishing heavier than you started is a sign of overdrinking.

• Test your sweat rate in one cool and one warm long run in March and April.
• Stations are 2 to 5.5 km apart. The longest gaps, 5.5 km each, come between 5 and 16 km, early in the race when it is usually cool.
• The first three stations are shared with the half marathon, which started at the same time last edition and splits off at Sol, so tables will be crowded. Aim for the later tables in each station.
• Throw away a cheap layer after the start if the morning is cold, rather than starting in a jacket you will overheat in.
• Seek medical help for confusion, severe headache, repeated vomiting, or collapse, whatever the clock says.

Breakfast and timing for an 08:45 start

The 2027 start time is still “to be determined”, so this plan uses last edition’s 08:45. Move every time by the same amount if the official time changes, or if your wave starts later. A familiar carbohydrate-rich meal one to four hours before racing is the standard framework, and ACSM gives 1 to 4 g of carbohydrate per kg in that window. With an early start, most runners do best with a meal 2.5 to 3.5 hours before, and a small top-up later.

• 05:15 to 06:15, about 2.5 to 3.5 hours before: the main breakfast, a practised meal such as white bread or toast with jam or honey, a banana and juice, or a bowl of rice, about 1.5 to 2.5 g of carbohydrate per kg.
• 06:30 to 07:00: travel by Metro to Gregorio Marañón or Rubén Darío. The free bag drop opens at 07:00 on Paseo de la Castellana, between Hermosilla and Ortega y Gasset.
• 07:00 to 08:00: sip 300 to 500 ml of a sports drink you know, and use the toilets early.
• Around 07:45: caffeine, at the dose and timing you have practised.
• 08:30 to 08:40: an optional gel in your start box, only if used in training.
• Pick up your bib and Fuel Bag on Friday 23 April if you can. There is no bib pickup on race day, and the organizer advises Friday morning or Saturday afternoon to avoid queues.

Course tactics: hills, Casa de Campo and the final climb

The 2027 course map matches last edition’s route, so these notes follow last edition’s official elevation profile. Heights are read from the profile and are approximate.

• 0 to 4 km: north up Paseo de la Castellana past the Bernabéu to Plaza de Castilla, climbing from about 670 m to the course high point of 731 m. It is crowded and uphill. Run by effort, not pace, and take your first gel around 20 minutes.
• 4 to 20 km: down Bravo Murillo to Cuatro Caminos, east through Joaquín Costa and Francisco Silvela to Doctor Esquerdo, then through Salamanca, Almagro, Sagasta, San Bernardo, Callao and Sol to Bailén. The trend is gently downhill to about 650 m, with short rises. This is the easiest place to eat; steady runners should have three or four gels in by the 20 km station.
• 20 to 33 km: past the Royal Palace, Plaza de España and Princesa, a short rise near 22.5 km, then down to about 580 m by 25 km on Avenida de Valladolid. Casa de Campo follows, with a climb back to about 630 m near 30 km. The gel point and two banana stations sit in this section. Shorten your stride on the climb and keep eating on the clock.
• 33 to 37 km: down to the lowest part of the course, about 575 m, along Madrid Río and Paseo de la Ermita del Santo, with guava bites at 35.8 km. It is flat. Take your last gel here or at the 38 km station.
• 37 to 42.2 km: the climb home, about 70 m, through Imperial, Pirámides, Embajadores, Atocha and Paseo del Prado to Cibeles and the finish on Recoletos. Your carbohydrate should already be in. Use Powerade at 38 and 40 km, and save your effort for the long drag up the Prado.

The long-run rehearsal that makes the plan real

Madrid rewards runners who train on hills and finish their long runs uphill. In March and April, plan two or three long runs that start at your race time, with breakfast at the same time as on race day, the same products, and fuel at the same clock times. Put a climb in the first few kilometres and another in the last 5 km. If you plan to use the 226ERS Fuel Bag gels or the course gel, buy some and test them here. The same goes for Powerade. One rehearsal proves the timing works; the next tests it under fatigue, at goal pace for racers and at the full expected time for the long-day group.

The later rehearsals are where you simplify. If carrying eight gels is awkward, lean on the 10 Powerade stations and carry fewer gels. If a gel every 20 minutes feels stressful, link your gels to the stations instead: most of them are 3 to 5.5 km apart. The best plan is the one you can still follow on the Paseo del Prado at 41 km.

Race-week Madrid checklist

• Read the final instructions, which the FAQ says arrive with your pickup QR code on 19 April. Check the start time, your wave, and any changes to the aid stations or the gel point.
• Collect your bib and Fuel Bag at IFEMA on 23 or 24 April, with your registration proof or QR code and photo ID.
• Lay out every carried item, add one backup, and write grams and timing on one card. Mark the final climb from 37 km.
• Plan your morning backward from the start: breakfast, Metro, bag drop, toilets, start box.
• Check the forecast 48 hours out and adjust fluid, sodium and clothing, not the whole plan.
• Do not try a new gel flavour from the expo on race day if you have not used it in training.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and update notes

1. 1Reglamento Maratón 2027 (race regulations)Zurich Rock ’n’ Roll Running Series Madrid (AD. MAPOMA)Accessed October 25, 2026; 25 April 2027 date, start time to be determined, aid station kilometres, cut-off table
2. 2FAQ (Spanish, 2027 edition)Zurich Rock ’n’ Roll Running Series Madrid (AD. MAPOMA)Accessed October 25, 2026; expo dates, Fuel Bag contents, 226ERS gel point, Powerade and banana points, start and finish locations, pacers, bag drop, event end 16:35
3. 3FAQ (English, last edition)Zurich Rock ’n’ Roll Running Series Madrid (AD. MAPOMA)Accessed October 25, 2026; last edition’s 08:45 marathon start, 16:34 closing time, Powerade at every station
4. 4Recorrido Maratón y Media Maratón 2027 (course map)Zurich Rock ’n’ Roll Running Series Madrid (AD. MAPOMA)Route, kilometre markers and aid station contents (water, Powerade, bananas, guava bites, 226ERS gel point)
5. 5Recorrido Maratón 2026 (course map with elevation profile)Zurich Rock ’n’ Roll Running Series Madrid, hosted by esMadridLast edition’s route and official elevation profile, 731 m high point to about 575 m low point
6. 6Chematot y Girma reinan en la gran fiesta de Zurich Rock’n’Roll Running Series MadridZurich Rock ’n’ Roll Running Series Madrid (AD. MAPOMA)Last edition’s marathon and half marathon started at 08:45
7. 7Más de 18.500 runners en los 5 primeros días de inscripciónZurich Rock ’n’ Roll Running Series Madrid (AD. MAPOMA)17,000 marathon and 30,000 half marathon bibs for 2027
8. 8Powerade (nutrition information)Coca-Cola EspañaAccessed October 25, 2026; regular flavours 5.0 g carbohydrate and 0.13 g salt per 100 ml
9. 9International Association of Athletics Federations Consensus Statement 2019: Nutrition for AthleticsInternational Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (Burke et al., 2019), PMID 30952204Carbohydrate ranges, pre-race meal, and hydration guidance
10. 10Contemporary Nutrition Strategies to Optimize Performance in Distance Runners and Race WalkersInternational Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (Burke et al., 2019), PMID 30747558Marathon carbohydrate intake, including up to 90 g per hour for trained runners in longer events
11. 11Nutrition and Athletic Performance: Joint Position StatementAmerican College of Sports Medicine (Thomas et al., 2016), PMID 268911661 to 4 g per kg carbohydrate 1 to 4 hours before exercise
12. 12A Step Towards Personalized Sports Nutrition: Carbohydrate Intake During ExerciseSports Medicine (Jeukendrup, 2014), PMID 24791914Multiple transportable carbohydrates and intakes above 60 g per hour
13. 13International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: Caffeine and Exercise PerformanceJISSN (Guest et al., 2021), PMID 333880793 to 6 mg per kg, about 60 minutes before exercise
14. 14April Weather in MadridWeather SparkEnd-of-April temperature, wet-day, humidity and sunrise averages