The demand record
All in-person distances at the 2026 CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon are sold out. The organiser's home page carries the line and points late entrants to limited charity entries. The participant FAQ runs a waitlist for the full and the half only, and states that spots may become available as entrants change categories, defer or cancel.
The race runs Saturday 7 November 2026. The organiser's own volunteer page calls it the largest marathon in Indiana and one of the 15 largest marathons in the United States.
The entry clock closes on 25 September
Three entry actions carry a Friday deadline. A transfer to another runner closes at 11:59 p.m. ET on 25 September 2026 and costs $20 plus processing fees. A deferral to the 2027 event closes at 5 p.m. ET the same day, costs $20 plus processing fees, and needs proof of injury, pregnancy or military deployment. A distance change carries a $10 fee after 25 September 2026 and depends on space.
The FAQ adds that a deferral does not extend beyond one year, and that pregnancy and postpartum deferrals may run to two years. Beyond Monumental offers a 10 percent discount to active and retired military members, their immediate families and first responders, and it asks for photo identification before registration.
Each action moves a room night. A transfer keeps the entry inside the 2026 field. A deferral and a cancellation move a night out of the 7 November weekend and into the 2027 edition.
The clocks that set the nights
The expo and packet pickup run at the Indiana Convention Center on Thursday 5 November from 4 to 7 p.m. and on Friday 6 November from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. That is 12 hours over the two days. Gear check opens at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday 7 November at Washington Street and West Street. The half and the full marathon start at 8 a.m., the 5K at 8:40 a.m., and the course closes at 3:30 p.m.
The gear-check rule decides the Thursday night for some entrants. Every participant collects a clear gear-check bag at the expo on 5 or 6 November, and the venue turns away any other bag. An entrant who wants the bag in hand before race morning books the Thursday night or the Friday night.
The two routes to a room
The organisers run a guest-room block through the Visit Indy Housing Bureau on the Passkey booking system. The search takes the Attendee selection, needs no access code, and lets one name hold up to five rooms. The Bureau answers a waitlist request for a preferred hotel and calls when the dates open.
The organiser also points entrants at the hotel directly. Its hotel page states that a search may return no availability when only single or non-sequential nights remain, and that direct rates sit outside block pricing.
The next cycle
Registration reopens at 12:00 a.m. ET on 1 January 2027. Beyond Monumental states that the first 1,000 participants to register lock in the lowest pricing before rates increase.