The running event routes have been announced by Birmingham 2022, with the best of Birmingham set to be put on display.

The men’s marathon, women’s marathon and the men’s and women’s T53/T54 events are using the same course. Beginning at Smithfield, the course will see athletes complete two loops of south Birmingham, followed by a route around the city centre. Birmingham’s landmarks are showcased to athletes, spectators and TV viewers as the runners are taken past Centenary Square, the Jewellery Quarter, St Paul’s Square and St Phillips’s Cathedral, finishing in Victoria Square.

Leader of Birmingham City Council, Councillor Ian Ward, sees the Commonwealth Games as a key moment for the city globally: “Road events are free-to-view from many locations, and in the case of the Marathon and Triathlon and Para Triathlon, are bringing the sporting action to the neighbourhoods of hundreds of thousands of Birmingham residents.

“As a Proud Host City they also provide us with a fantastic promotional tool to show off many of our districts and landmarks to a global audience, which is an invaluable opportunity we are ready to embrace.”

Director of Sport for Birmingham 2022, Matt Kidson, similarly recognises the value of this worldwide reach, as well as the benefit to local businesses and residents: “We are thrilled to be unveiling our final venue for the Games and it is fitting that Victoria Square has been chosen as the finish area for the Marathon, as it is located right in the heart of the host city for Birmingham 2022.

“We are also pleased to be able to publish all of the courses for our road events. These routes will help to profile some fantastic landmarks from across the region and showcase the West Midlands to the world.

“Publishing these details with nine months still to go until the Games begin also means that local residents, businesses and other organisations have plenty of time to make plans for when these one-day events are staged in their local area.”

Part of England Athletics’ Birmingham Talent Hub and targeting selection for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games is Birmingham based marathon runner Hayley Carruthers: “The course for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games marathon looks great and it is exciting to find out the exact roads I’ll be running on if I get selected for next summer’s event. I’m very familiar with parts of the route having taken part in the Great Birmingham Run and the course goes past lots of Birmingham landmarks, so it is a good way to showcase the city.

“It would be fantastic to be selected to represent Team England at a home games, and I’ll be working harder than ever over the next few months to ensure that I am on that start line in Smithfield in nine months’ time.”

The Marathon is set to take place on 30th July and we in the Jewellery Quarter can’t wait to welcome all the athletes and spectators for a spectacular summer.