Running Through Ancient and Modern Pompeii

A road race inside the Archaeological Park

"Running Through Ancient and Modern Pompeii" is one of the few road races in Italy that truly traverses a UNESCO World Heritage site. Every June, the town of Pompeii, in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, opens a 10.3-kilometer course to runners, connecting the modern city to the ruins of the ancient Roman colony. For about a kilometer, athletes run inside the excavations with special authorization from the Archaeological Park management—a privilege no other race in Campania can offer.

The route: from city streets to ancient cobblestones

The race traditionally starts in via Aldo Moro, in front of the San Giuseppe parish, early in the morning. From there, the pack winds through a loop that touches the city's most recognizable landmarks before diving into the ruins.

• Urban center crossing: via Macello, via Astolelle, via Martiri per la Libertà, via Unità d'Italia, via Mazzini, via Lepanto;
• Passage through piazza Bartolo Longo, the devotional heart of the modern city, in front of the Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary;
• Entry into the excavations at Porta Anfiteatro and exit at Porta Ercolano, the most photographed section of the entire race;
• via Villa dei Misteri, via Plinio, the new overpass, via Masseria Curato, via Stabiana, and via Moregine, amidst the Vesuvius countryside;
• Finish near the San Giuseppe parish, the starting point of the loop.

The elevation gain is modest and the course is considered fast, but the variety of surfaces—city asphalt, ancient cobblestones, country roads—requires focus and smart pacing.

A race born in 2022

The event was conceived by the ASD Movimento Sportivo «Bartolo Longo», a club founded in 1993 by laypeople from the San Giuseppe parish and named after Blessed Bartolo Longo, the founder of the Pompeii Sanctuary. The club is best known for its historic Naples-Pompeii Peace Run, which retraces the 19th-century pilgrimage route between the regional capital and the Marian city. Starting in 2022, the association added this shorter, more accessible local race to connect the two faces of Pompeii: the world-renowned archaeological site and the everyday life of its neighborhoods and parishes.

Sport and devotion: the Madonna delle Grazie feast

The race is not an isolated event: it is part of the celebrations in honor of Madonna delle Grazie, an ancient devotion linked to the Sant'Abbondio chapel and the San Giuseppe parish. Every summer, this tradition brings the area below the excavations to life with processions, novenas, musical evenings, and fireworks. Combining a sporting event with a religious festival is typical of Southern Italy and the Neapolitan province in particular: the race kicks off the festive morning, involving families, youth groups, and local associations before the afternoon shifts to liturgical celebrations.

Who participates

Past editions have drawn between three and four hundred athletes, many from outside the region, all drawn by the idea of running among the domus and insulae of ancient Pompeii. The race is organized in collaboration with the FIDAL Campania regional committee and is open to registered athletes, though previous editions have always included an amateur and recreational component, with the Pro Loco "Città di Pompei" managing participant hospitality.

Pompeii, much more than an archaeological site

Visitors arriving for the race often discover a city that extends far beyond the ruins. Pompeii has over 25,000 inhabitants and is both a world-famous archaeological destination and one of Italy's main Marian pilgrimage centers, thanks to the Sanctuary commissioned by Bartolo Longo in the late 19th century. Surrounding it, Campania offers Mount Vesuvius, the coast of Castellammare and Sorrento, and the San Marzano tomato plains: a setting that makes it easy to turn a Sunday run into a weekend getaway.