Oxford Half

Name: Oxford Half
Brand: Limelight Sports
Rating: 4.166666666666667 (3 reviews)

4.2 · 3 reviews

From Limelight Sports

Date Sun 13th October 2019
Location Oxford
Races 1 race
Distances Half Marathon

Event summary

Get ready to lace up your running shoes for the Oxford Half, an exhilarating half marathon experience taking place on Sunday, October 13, 2019, in the historic city of Oxford, Oxfordshire. Organised by Limelight Sports, this exciting event invites participants to tackle a fast and flat 13.1-mile route that showcases the beauty and charm of Oxford. Runners will start from the vibrant city centre and journey past renowned museums, prestigious universities, and picturesque parks, all while enjoying the lively atmosphere created by local bands and DJs along the course.

The race offers a unique opportunity to explore the scenic landscape, from crossing the River Cherwell to meandering through the quaint village of Old Marston and back past the stunning University Colleges. With the Oxford Half's growing popularity, a public ballot system has been introduced for general entries, ensuring that this sought-after event remains accessible. Don't miss your chance to be part of this unforgettable day filled with autumn cheer and camaraderie—apply for the ballot before it closes on March 1st!

Oxford Half

Sun 13th October 2019

Four runners jog past the Radcliffe Camera, an iconic circular library building with a dome in Oxford, UK. The runners are dressed in athletic wear, and the historic architecture provides a striking backdrop to their energetic activity.

Organiser's Description

The Oxford Half is returning in 2019, for a day of Autumn cheer and challenge. The fast and flat 13.1 mile route kicks off from Oxford City centre, and speeds by World-famous museums, universities, and parks. You'll dash through historic city streets, cross over the River Cherwell, out into the charming village of Old Marston, and back past the spectacular University Colleges.

Live music, local bands and DJs will be on course to motivate trailblazing participants all the way to the finish line. Due to the Oxford Half's popularity and limited capacity, a public ballot will be introduced for 2019 general entries. Ballot applications are open now and close on 1 March. Successful applicants will receive their invitations in March.

Races

Oxford Half

CLOSED

Faq's

What time does the race start?

The Oxford Half Marathon starts at 09:30 am on Sunday 13th October

Where does the course start and finish?

The race kicks off on Broad Street (OX1 3BQ) taking runners over the River Cherwell, past the University colleges and finishes on Parks road.

Whats included?

Entry to the Oxford Half includes:
Finishers Medal
Technical T Shirt
A Tote bag
Goodies from race partners

What were the fastest finish times last year?

The fastest male finish time in the 2018 Oxford Half was 01:08:37 set by Ben Cole with Sarah Van Der Wielen setting the fastest female finish time of 01:12:01

When will I receive my race pack?

Your race pack will be posted out to you a couple of weeks before the event. This will include your race number which has the timing chip built into it.

Can spectators track runners?

The virgin sport app allows friends and family to track runners taking part in the race using their race number. This can be downloaded from the Apple store and Google Play.

Can I listen to music with headphones during the race?

The organisers strongly suggest that runners do not wear headphones during the race to ensure that they can hear other participants and any safety announcements from race marshals. With plenty of spectators and a fantastic atmosphere you'll definitely be missing out too!

When can I find out my finish time?

Accurate race finish times and full results will be posted on the Virgin Sport website shortly after the race has finished. If you provided your mobile number when signing up you’ll also have your personal time texted to you shortly after crossing the finish line.

What’s the best way to get to the course?

Due to the number of spectators, runners and road closures for the event organiser recommends taking advantage of the park and ride services. This runs from four locations around Oxford:

North - OX2 8JZ - Pear Tree Car Park
South - OX1 4XG Redbridge Car Park
West - OX3 8DP Seacourt Car Park
East - OX2 0HP Thornhill Car Park

Tickets are under £5 and should be booked in advance.

Event Video

Reviews

4.2

3 reviews

Samuel

·2 years ago

Fantastic event and very well organised. Big shoutout to Find a Race. Couldn’t recommend them more for anyone looking to get booked on to their first half marathon.

Vladimir

·5 years ago

Reliably good, scenic and fast Half. The weather this time was something completely special and unique, so let's take it away from the equation. Generally, I’m happy how the race was organised. With about 7000 participants running, Virgin Sports did a good job keeping the race safe and providing water & electrolytes on the course. The course was quite flat, maybe a bit too much packed into the same streets, with dual-way running. I think my only concern is, since the race village was in the park and it was raining cats & dogs, the entire territory around tents was wet and muddy. Even with gravel covered pathways, it was barely possible to get in or out without collecting the mud on your feet. Thinking out loud, some recycled plastic/rubber mats could to the job, if properly placed on the pathways… But I get it, maybe it was hard to predict & plan such things in advance. Same as with the transportation: when you put thousands of people into a small historical city, you'd obviously expect some heavy traffic & delays.

Kate

·5 years ago

Great run, course could be better?. First off, the weather REALLY affected the run this year. It was terribly wet, and had been wet for a while before the run, so at some points water lay ankle-deep across the road. I would have liked to have seen the grass protected at University Parks, with those underfoot grids you see used. There was a wait at the start if you were right at the back, but with 12k runners, that’s acceptable. The first few miles wind around the town but then you have the first of two out-and-back drags, up to Summertown and back. Then there’s another long drag out to the village of Marston, which made for quite boring running. Luckily, after about mile 9/10 you head back into town to finish up. The t shirt and medal were great, decent goody bag too, and despite the awful wet, people were so upbeat, both runners and supporters. This race would score five stars if only the course was better! Those out and back drags are there to make up distance and they’re not fun to run. I know councils really affect road closures and in oxford of course you have colleges too but PLEASE, could this race change to have a more imaginative and central route? Even just knocking out the Marston drag would be great.

Add a review

Location

Oxford, UK

Who's In

See who else did this event

Darren Brookes

View

James Ganderton

View

Josie Wilde

View

Kate Large

View

Matija Kovačević

View

Zeph Brand

View

Sarah Toon

View

Serhad Bolukcu

View

Terry Scott

View

Timothy faulkner

View

Oxford Half

This event has taken place

Details about the next edition of this event have been added.

12 October 2025

Did you race? Let the community know how you got on and leave a review.

Add a review

Want to see all previous and future editions of this event, find them below.

Add to your events

Event Organiser

Limelight Sports

Oxford Half

Organiser's Description