After the great success in 2025, Sparta is bringing back its reuse concept Swap Spot for the Copenhagen Marathon 2026. Swap Spot will be open the days after the race and will feature all the leftover clothing from the start area, as well as items people bring in themselves to swap.

If you’ve ever been at the start area of a big running event, you’ll know there are piles of clothes left behind by runners keeping warm before the start. In the past, much of this clothing was often thrown away if it was wet or dirty and couldn’t be donated.

In 2025, Sparta Atletik & Løb decided to change that. They launched Swap Spot – a swap market for used sportswear placed in front of Sparta’s clubhouse on Østerbro. In the Swap Spot pavilion, everyone can drop off and pick up clothing, shoes, and gear to give it a second life.

Swap Spot was first tested during the Copenhagen Half Marathon 2025, where all the abandoned clothing from the start area was collected and displayed the day after the race. Interest was huge, and more than 3,000 items found new owners in just two days.

“The support we saw last time was overwhelming. We received so much positive feedback from locals, passers-by, and our own members that we had no doubt it should be repeated,” says Nynne Ammundsen, Sustainability Manager at Sparta.

Swap Spot will once again be set up in front of Sparta’s clubhouse on Østerbro. This time, it will feature clothing from the start area after the Copenhagen Marathon, along with sports gear donated by members and locals – all items that can still have a lot of life left in them.

At Sparta, there’s great pride in providing a platform that gives more people access to functional sports equipment. Everyone is encouraged to stop by and donate sports clothes, shoes, and gear they no longer use but that can still create great sporting experiences for others.

Where and when is Swap Spot?
Swap Spot will take place in the pavilion in front of Sparta’s clubhouse at Gunnar Nu Hansens Plads 11, Østerbro, Copenhagen from 11-13 May 2026 (the pavilion opens at 12:00 on 11 May).