Compiled and fact-checked by Tommo, Verus founder · Last verified August 2026 · Spot an error?

Running · Other Distances

Voltaren City2Surf 2027

Race day
Sunday, 8 August 2027
Location
Sydney, New South Wales
Distance
8.7 mi / 14.0 km

City2Surf: 8 August 2027, Sydney CBD to Bondi. 14km, Heartbreak Hill, start groups, entry and the finish-line cut-off.

332Days

Voltaren City2Surf Race Timeline

Training Phase Build Phase Taper Race Week Race Day Race Completed

332 days to go

More than 42 days out — a good window to build a consistent base before 8.7-mile-specific training ramps up.

Generated mark — no elevation published for this course

Voltaren City2Surf 2027: quick answers

When is Voltaren City2Surf 2027?

Voltaren City2Surf 2027 takes place on Sunday, 8 August 2027, starting at 7:35am for the Elite, Preferred and Red start groups, with later groups released through to 9:27am.

What time does Voltaren City2Surf start?

Voltaren City2Surf starts at 7:35am for the Elite, Preferred and Red start groups, with later groups released through to 9:27am from Park Street and College Street, Sydney CBD (start line on William Street).

Where does Voltaren City2Surf start and finish?

Voltaren City2Surf starts at Park Street and College Street, Sydney CBD (start line on William Street) and finishes at Queen Elizabeth Drive, Bondi Beach.

How many miles is Voltaren City2Surf?

Voltaren City2Surf is 8.7 miles (14km).

How much does Voltaren City2Surf cost to enter?

Entry is direct through the official site, sold by start group. Groups sell out individually and there is no waitlist once one is full, so the choice is which group to enter rather than whether to wait.

How can I track a runner at Voltaren City2Surf?

The Voltaren City2Surf app carries the schedule, results and live tracking, so friends and family can follow a runner between the CBD and Bondi. A new app was introduced for 2026; earlier versions no longer work.

Key Race Metrics & Overview

Date
Sunday, 8 August 2027
Distance
8.7 miles / 14.0km
Location
Sydney, New South Wales
Start Point
Park Street and College Street, Sydney CBD (start line on William Street)
Finish Point
Queen Elizabeth Drive, Bondi Beach
Start time
7:35am for the Elite, Preferred and Red start groups, with later groups released through to 9:27am
Surface
Closed public roads, tarmac throughout
Cut-off time
The start line closes at 9:50am and the finish line at Bondi closes at 1:50pm.
Tracking app
The Voltaren City2Surf app carries the schedule, results and live tracking, so friends and family can follow a runner between the CBD and Bondi. A new app was introduced for 2026; earlier versions no longer work.

Not published by the organiser at the time of writing: age requirement. Verus records these as unconfirmed rather than estimating them — check the official race website closer to race day.

Direct Entry Summary

Entry is direct through the official site, sold by start group. Groups sell out individually and there is no waitlist once one is full, so the choice is which group to enter rather than whether to wait.

Ballot Policy

No ballot. Entry is first come, first served by start group, and there is no waitlist once a group fills.

Voltaren City2Surf Race Day Weather

A real forecast appears here once one exists for race day — usually about a week to ten days out. Nothing is shown until then, because a made-up forecast is worse than none.

Voltaren City2Surf Route Map & Elevation Profile

Starting at Park Street and College Street, Sydney CBD (start line on William Street) and finishing at Queen Elizabeth Drive, Bondi Beach. Total elevation gain is not published for this event, and Verus does not estimate one.

Is Voltaren City2Surf flat?

No, and the whole event is built around the fact. City2Surf's defining feature is Heartbreak Hill — roughly two kilometres of climbing from Rose Bay towards Vaucluse, starting near the halfway mark. It is not steep in mountain terms, but it arrives exactly when a fast opening downhill has already been banked, and it is long enough that people who went out hard on William Street spend the rest of the race paying for it. The organiser does not publish a total elevation figure, so Verus does not state one.

Voltaren City2Surf Course Profile

Elevation change not published for this event.

Startmi 4.38.7mi

Tap a point on the course for details.

mi 0.0

Park Street and College Street, Sydney CBD (start line on William Street)

Start line.

mi 4.5

Heartbreak Hill

The climb from Rose Bay up towards Vaucluse, roughly 2km long and starting near halfway. No official gain figure is published, so none is stated here — but it is the whole race.

Where Voltaren City2Surf starts and finishes

Start: Park Street and College Street, Sydney CBD (start line on William Street)Finish: Queen Elizabeth Drive, Bondi Beach

These are the start and finish points, not the route. Verus doesn't hold course files for this race, and drawing a line between two pins would be a guess you might end up training on. The official course map is the one to use: view it on the organiser's site .

Full Voltaren City2Surf Route Breakdown

Fourteen kilometres from the middle of Sydney to the middle of Bondi, and the largest fun run in the world. It starts at the Park Street and College Street intersection, drops downhill along William Street and through the Kings Cross tunnel, then runs east along New South Head Road and winds through Rose Bay. At about the halfway point comes Heartbreak Hill, the two-kilometre climb from Rose Bay up towards Vaucluse that gives the race its character and its reputation. From the top the course turns onto Old South Head Road, then Military Road, with the ocean opening up on the descent, a turnaround at Curlewis Street and a finish on Queen Elizabeth Drive at Bondi Beach.

Voltaren City2Surf Pace Calculator & Splits

Voltaren City2Surf Pace Calculator

Enter a target finish time to see your pace and projected splits.

hrs
min
sec
target time

Average pace / mile

27:35

Average pace / km

17:08

5K1:25:42
10K2:51:25
Finish4:00:00

Voltaren City2Surf Pace Chart

Split markers calculated for standard checkpoints — no official pacers are confirmed for this event.

Target Pace /mi Pace /km 5K10KFinish
3:00 20:41 12:51 1:04:172:08:343:00:00
3:15 22:25 13:56 1:09:382:19:163:15:00
3:30 24:08 15:00 1:15:002:29:593:30:00
3:45 25:52 16:04 1:20:212:40:423:45:00
4:00 27:35 17:08 1:25:422:51:254:00:00
4:15 29:19 18:13 1:31:043:02:084:15:00
4:30 31:02 19:17 1:36:253:12:504:30:00
4:45 32:46 20:21 1:41:473:23:334:45:00
5:00 34:29 21:26 1:47:083:34:165:00:00
5:30 37:56 23:34 1:57:513:55:425:30:00
6:00 41:23 25:43 2:08:344:17:076:00:00
6:30 44:50 27:51 2:19:164:38:336:30:00
7:00 48:17 30:00 2:29:594:59:587:00:00

Voltaren City2Surf Finish Time Estimator

Enter a recent 5K, 10K or Half Marathon time to estimate your Voltaren City2Surf finish time.

Your 5K time

hrs
min
sec

Estimated Voltaren City2Surf finish

1:14:28

An estimate only, based on Pete Riegel's race-time prediction formula. Real marathon performance depends on endurance, training specificity, pacing and race-day conditions — not just your speed over a shorter distance.

Training for a different distance? Try the full pace calculator, race time predictor or pace chart.

Got your target time? Save it to your profile.

Tag Voltaren City2Surf, set your goal pace, and let Verus track your countdown, training and fundraising in one place.

Start Your Verus Journey

Voltaren City2Surf Race Day Checklist

Tap items to mark off your race-day readiness.

0/6
  • Race bib collected at the Hordern Pavilion expo, or posted in advance if you paid for it
  • Your start group time checked — arriving thirty minutes before your own group, not the first one
  • Public transport plan into the CBD, which is included with entry
  • Something disposable for the wait, and something dry to change into at Bondi
  • A meeting point agreed at Bondi that is not the finish line itself
  • Sunscreen — the second half runs east into open coast with no shade

Training Strategy for Voltaren City2Surf

Standard Training Window

6-10 weeks is a solid window for a 8.7-mile race. Combine a weekly long run with threshold work so you can hold pace over the full distance.

Terrain Specificity

This is a largely flat course, so most of your long runs can mirror that — flat and steady, building time on feet rather than hill strength.

The Taper Phase

Ease off mileage in the final week, keeping a couple of short, sharp race-pace efforts to stay fresh. Arrive at Park Street and College Street, Sydney CBD (start line on William Street) fresh, energized, and primed — not fit, fresh.

Pacing Execution

Lock in your target pace using the interactive splits calculator below — no official pacers are confirmed for this event, so a pace band on your watch is the more reliable option.

Fuel & Hydration Prep

Test your race-day fuel and hydration plan on your long training runs, not for the first time on race day — check the Race Day Checklist below for what's actually on this course.

8.7-Mile Nutrition & Fueling Plan

2-3 Days Prior

A normal diet is fine. There is no need to carb-load for a race of this length.

Race Morning

Eat a carbohydrate-focused breakfast two to three hours before the start, and stick to something you've already tested in training rather than trying anything new.

On-Course Fueling

Fluid at the on-course stations is usually enough; some runners take a single gel around the hour mark.

Post-Race Recovery

Recovery starts with what you eat in that first hour — a mix of carbohydrate and protein is what the evidence supports.

Voltaren City2Surf Charity Places 2027

City2Surf runs one of the largest charity fundraising programmes in Australian sport — more than $63 million raised since the tally was first recorded in 2008. Charity Superstars get their own start group at 8:19am. Fundraising is open to any entrant rather than being a separate entry route.

Impactful Storytelling

Lead with your personal story — explain why the charity matters to you. Personal connection generates 3x more support than a generic link broadcast.

Social Campaign Milestones

Share key training milestones on Instagram (first 10-miler, peak week, race week) with your fundraising link in bio. Publicly thanking donors prompts secondary gifts!

Running Voltaren City2Surf for charity?

Link your JustGiving page to Verus and show up right here alongside other Voltaren City2Surf fundraisers — goal, progress and story, all in one place.

Add Your Fundraiser to Verus

Where to Stay for Voltaren City2Surf

Sydney CBD

Pros

Walk to the start, and the expo at Moore Park is a short trip. Everything about race morning gets simpler.

Cons

You finish 14km away at Bondi and have to get back, along with 80,000 other people.

Bondi and Bondi Junction

Pros

You finish where you are staying, which after a hot 14km with no shade is worth a great deal. Bondi Junction is the transport hub for the whole eastern suburbs.

Cons

An early trip into the city for the start, and Bondi on City2Surf morning is not a quiet place to sleep in.

Travel & Logistics

By Train

Entry includes public transport to and from the event. Museum and St James stations are closest to the start; the finish at Bondi Beach is served by buses from Bondi Junction, which is where most of the field ends up afterwards.

Park & Ride Shuttles

No park and ride. Driving to either end is impractical given the closures and the size of the field.

Road closures

Rolling closures across the CBD, William Street, New South Head Road and the eastern suburbs through to Bondi. The official site publishes a traffic impact page ahead of race day.

Spectator & Cheer Guide

Cheer Zones & Hotspots

Rose Bay at about 5km, the top of Heartbreak Hill for the view back to the Harbour Bridge, and Ben Buckler above Bondi are the three spots the organiser itself points people to.

Course Navigation

The course is essentially one line from the city to the coast, so spectators tend to pick one point rather than chase. Bondi Junction is the practical base for anyone wanting to see a runner mid-course and then reach the finish.

Live App Tracking

The Voltaren City2Surf app carries the schedule, results and live tracking, so friends and family can follow a runner between the CBD and Bondi. A new app was introduced for 2026; earlier versions no longer work.

Voltaren City2Surf Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know for race weekend.

Race details independently compiled and fact-checked by Tommo against the official Voltaren City2Surf site , last verified August 2026. Always confirm official timings and policies directly prior to race day.