THE SPECTACLE 2026

The Spectacle offers a range of events from a road mile to a 100-mile trail race, held as a running festival in Whakatū Nelson, New Zealand. Taking place in early December, its program features city-road racing, relays, and trail events. The road events include a flat mile through central Nelson, a seven-lap 5km in the city, and relay options for corporate, open, and school teams. The trail distances range from 10km to 23km, 50km, 100km, and 100 miles. The event was initiated by local runners aiming for a broad, community-focused festival instead of a typical race weekend. The schedule accommodates beginners, walkers, club runners, elite athletes, athletes with a disability, school teams, and Olympians. The mile race features open, junior, high school, and AWD categories. The longer events have hosted national championship races for the road mile and 50km. The city races position runners before spectators in central Whakatū, while the trail events utilize Nelson's challenging terrain, including a 22km race described as one of Aotearoa's more difficult half-marathon-style courses.