Some fun runs ask you to drag yourself out of bed for a lap of a car park. The Beachside Dash asks you to run along the sparkling edge of Botany Bay, with the sea breeze in your face and the knowledge that every dollar you raise goes to medical research. It's one of southern Sydney's favourite community races, and in 2026 it lands on Sunday 13 September at Dolls Point — with a brand-new headline act.
2026 marks the very first 21.1km Half Marathon in the event's history. Starting from Dolls Point, the course links the St George area to the Sutherland Shire, sending runners across the iconic Captain Cook Bridge with a turnaround down at Shark Park. It's a properly measured, professionally timed course and a genuinely memorable way to knock over a half — equal parts community fun run and bucket-list bridge crossing.
There's a distance for everyone, each professionally timed with cash prizes for the pointy end and a medal for every finisher:
Walk it, jog it or race it — the Dash is famously welcoming to every level and ability.
The Beachside Dash is the flagship fundraiser for the St George & Sutherland Medical Research Foundation (SSMRF), and every entry and donation goes towards vital medical research. You can set up a fundraising page when you register and rope in friends, family and colleagues — it adds a real sense of purpose to those final kilometres along the bay.
The foreshore course is flat, fast and gloriously scenic, but it's also exposed — slap on some sunscreen and bring a hat for after. Cross the line and make the most of the dedicated Recovery Area before settling in for the morning. September in Sydney is close to perfect running weather, so don't be surprised if you chase down a PB.
Register through Race Roster via the official site, with early-bird pricing rewarding the organised. Dolls Point sits on the Botany Bay foreshore in Sydney's south, an easy drive from the St George and Sutherland Shire areas — arrive early to sort parking and soak up the start-line buzz.
