Get ready to experience the excitement of running on America’s longest Main Street in the historic town of Belleville, IL, situated in the heart of America and just a short drive from downtown St. Louis, MO! As you make your way down Main Street, enthusiastic volunteers will greet you on every corner, providing incredible support and cheers with the charm of a Midwest small town. Our full marathon is a USTAF-certified Boston Marathon qualifier and features about 16 miles of city roads, including Main Street, and approximately 10 miles on a paved trail, making both the full and half marathons accessible for runners of all experience levels! Participants will receive a soon-to-be your favorite everything T-shirt and a finisher’s medal as part of their registration. After the race, join us for a celebration featuring Belleville’s Bennie’s Pizza Pub pizza, a special beer brewed just for you by Belleville’s Shoehorn Brewing (for those ages 21 and older), and a DJ to keep the atmosphere lively as you celebrate your remarkable achievement.

TIME: Both the full and half marathons will begin at 7 AM on Saturday, September 27, 2025. FULL MARATHON course support ends at 1:30 PM. HALF MARATHON course support ends at 10:30 AM.

COURSE: The full and half marathons will start and finish on Main Street near First Street in downtown Belleville, IL (close to 19 Public Square, Belleville 62220). The full marathon features a USTAF-certified course that qualifies for the Boston Marathon. The full marathon covers approximately 16 miles on city streets – including America’s longest Main Street – and around 10 miles on the paved biking and walking trail of the St. Clair County Transit District. The half marathon also runs through city streets, showcasing America’s longest Main Street.

COURSE SUPPORT AND TIME LIMITS: Water and Gatorade stations will be available approximately every two miles along the course, with Gu energy gels provided at various locations: around mile 10 for the half marathon, and at miles 11.5, 18, and 23 for the full marathon. Porta-potties will be situated at the start/finish line area and near all water stations. Medical assistance will also be on hand. Full marathon participants need to reach mile 13 by 10 AM; otherwise, they will be transported by an official race vehicle to a different point on the course, allowing them to finish with an unofficial time and receive a finisher medal. Half marathon runners must reach mile 6.5 by 8:50 AM and complete the race by 10:30 AM to obtain an official race time. If any runners remain on the course after volunteers have been dismissed, the participants must move to the sidewalks and adhere to traffic laws for their safety.

MILE MARKERS AND COURSE MARKERS: To guide full marathon participants, green arrows will be displayed along the road and trail. For half marathon runners, yellow arrows will be marked on the roadway. The mile markers for both the full and half marathons will look the same (white and horizontally aligned) until the half marathon turnaround point on 95th Street. Beginning at mile 6.5 on 95th Street, half marathon mile markers will be labeled “Half Marathon,” feature a yellow background, and will be oriented vertically instead of horizontally. After mile 6.5, all horizontally positioned white mile markers will indicate the full marathon. A yellow feather flag on 95th Street will signify the turnaround for the half marathon.

RESULTS
NEW for 2025: Race results will be published live with on-course timing splits. Race results can be viewed on your phone or at on-site kiosks during the event. All participants will receive text notifications at all on-course splits and their finish time immediately upon crossing the timing mats. At the conclusion of the race, all finishers will receive an email of their official race results and a link to the results on Athlinks. All past and present race results can be found on Athlinks Results.

PACKET PICKUP
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26 (note: there are 2 options at different times of the day)
– 10 AM to 5:00 PM Toolen’s Running Start, 3260 Green Mount Crossing Drive, Shiloh, IL 62269.
– 6:00 to 8:00 PM Bennie’s Pizza Pub, 113 E. Main Street, Belleville, IL 62220.

RACE DAY PACKET PICKUP
– 5:30 to 6:30 AM near the start line near Main Street and First Street.

FINISHER MEDALS/AWARDS
All race finishers will receive a medal at the finish line. Event shirts will be provided at packet pickup. Awards will be given to the Top 3 Overall Male and Female, Overall Male and Female Master’s (40+), Male and Female Wheelchair finishers and to the Top 3 Finishers in each of the following Male and Female age group categories: 18-19; 20-24; 25-29; 30-34; 35-39; 40-44; 45-49; 50-54; 55-59; 60-64; 65-69; and 70 & older. After crossing the finish line, visit the kiosks at the Results Tent to look up your race results to see if you placed in your age group.

POST-RACE CELEBRATION
Our post-race celebration includes a variety of food, an exclusive beer brewed just for you by Shoehorn Brewing in downtown Belleville (for those 21 and older), and a DJ to pump you up and celebrate that awesome feeling of accomplishment.

PARKING
Complimentary and accessible parking is offered at various city-owned lots listed below, as well as curbside where permitted. Please do not park in business lots as many businesses are open Saturday.
– FREE parking garage at 1 Lincoln Street, which is a short walk to the start/finish line (RECOMMENDED). The garage will be monitored by county officials.
– Lot at corner of North High Street and East A Street (behind Lincoln Theatre)
– Lot at South Jackson and East Washington (behind Copper Fire)
– Lot at corner of North 3rd Street and West Main (across from Governor French school)

RACE DAY PHOTOS
Rutster Photography will be capturing professional race-day photographs, which will be available to download for FREE at the company’s Belleville Main Street Marathon gallery.

POST-RACE LOCKER ROOMS/SHOWERS
The Downtown Belleville YMCA located at 200 S. Illinois Street – just a few blocks from the finish line – provides runners access to its showers and locker rooms. You will need to provide a state issued ID and must complete a waiver to benefit from this service. Waivers will be available during packet pickup and on race day.

THE STREAKER AWARD
Participants who ran EACH of the 8 past in-person Belleville Main Street Marathons (2016-2019, 2021-2024) will be recognized with our commemorative Streaker Award. Please ask for your award at packet pickup.

EVENT MEDICAL SUPPORT
BJC HealthCare Memorial Hospital staff and other medical officials will be prepared to treat injuries that may occur during this event, including a medical tent and personnel at the start/finish line area and medical staff on the course.

RACE ORGANIZERS
The Belleville Main Street Marathon and Half Marathon is a non-profit event organized by the Belleville Running Club and Toolen’s Running Start, with proceeds reinvested back into our community.