Sub-3

What Sub-3 does

Sub-3 (legally Sub-3 Media Ltd) is a UK-incorporated independent publishing and data company that operates an editorial and analytics platform exclusively for amateur marathon runners pursuing a sub-3 hour finish. Founded in 2025 and registered in England and Wales, the company is led by founder and editor Patrick Hayes, a 10-time sub-3 marathoner with a 2:37 personal best. The platform is built on Ghost CMS and combines a long-form editorial publication, a free email newsletter, and social channels on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube under the @sub3hq handle.

The company's core asset is the World Marathon Rankings system, a proprietary 45:45:10 scoring model applied to 286 manually verified eligible road marathons across 61 countries, supported by regional editions (Europe, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Nordic Countries) and seasonal cuts (winter, spring, summer, monthly). Ranking criteria require certified road marathons, publicly verifiable results, 1,000+ finishers, and at least one sub-3 performance, with all data hand-collected from official race results rather than scraped. A World Marathon Calendar, a consolidated 'How to Run a Sub-3 Marathon' reference guide, and hundreds of training, strategy, gear, and nutrition articles form the supporting content layer, complemented by a community story-submission program.

The business model is overwhelmingly content-led with minimal monetization. The only documented paid offering is a limited first-run merchandise drop (embroidered technical running caps at £30 each, capped at 30 units). The newsletter is free with no paid tier, and no advertising, sponsorship, or affiliate revenue is currently disclosed. Sub-3 holds three UK registered trade marks (SUB-3, logo, World Marathon Rankings) and operates from a registered office in Covent Garden, London, with editorial activity based in St Albans.

Name

Sub-3

Legal name

Sub-3 Media Ltd

Website

https://sub3-marathon.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sub-3 is a UK-based independent publishing and data company serving amateur marathon runners targeting a sub-3 hour finish, operating a Ghost CMS platform with the proprietary World Marathon Rankings, hundreds of training articles, a community story program, and limited merchandise sales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Merchandise sales: Sale of branded Sub-3 merchandise including the SUB-3 embroidered technical running cap priced at £30 with UK postage included. First run limited to 30 caps. Merchandise serves both as revenue stream and brand reinforcement for the running community.
2. Newsletter subscriptions: Free newsletter delivering latest posts and practical insights straight to subscribers' inboxes. Currently free but positioned as a potential revenue generator or community engagement tool.
3. Content-driven advertising potential: While not explicitly monetized through ads currently, the platform's high-quality content and engaged running community creates potential for future advertising or sponsorship integration with running-related brands.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Sub-3 is an independent publishing and data company that produces marathon training content, runner experience stories, and proprietary World Marathon Rankings built from manually verified sub-3 hour performance data across 286 eligible marathons in 61 countries. It also sells branded merchandise (embroidered running caps) and operates a free newsletter subscription.

Product overview

Sub-3 is a media and data platform focused exclusively on helping amateur runners achieve a sub-3 hour marathon. The core product is the World Marathon Rankings system, which provides data-driven global and regional rankings (Europe, US, Australia, Nordic Countries) of the fastest road marathons for sub-3-hour runners using a 45:45:10 scoring model. Supporting products include a World Marathon Calendar, the How to Run a Sub-3 Marathon practical guide, and hundreds of training/strategy articles. The platform also offers community features (Submit Your Sub-3 Story), an official merchandise shop, and a free newsletter subscription. Sub-3 operates as a content-driven platform powered by Ghost CMS, with no public API or technical integrations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• World Marathon Rankings The definitive global rankings of the fastest road marathons for sub-3-hour runners, using a 45:45:10 scoring model that balances proportion of sub-3 finishers (45%), absolute number of sub-3 performances (45%), and fastest winning time (10%). Built from manually verified results from official marathon results pages.
• Fastest Marathons in Europe Rankings European edition of Sub-3's rankings, covering 48% of the 286 races in the global dataset. Features 136 ranked European marathons including Valencia, Sevilla, Frankfurt, London, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Berlin, and others.
• Fastest Marathons in the United States Rankings US national edition of Sub-3's rankings, covering 76 US marathons across 39 states. Top performers include Boston, California International Marathon, Chicago, Indianapolis Monumental, and Mt Charleston.
• World Marathon Calendar
• How to Run a Sub-3 Marathon Guide A comprehensive practical reference guide distilling key lessons from hundreds of Sub-3 articles covering training structure, pacing, race strategy, nutrition, recovery, gear, and mindset for runners chasing a sub-3 marathon.
• Training and Strategy Articles Hundreds of articles advising runners on marathon training topics including training fundamentals, race execution, nutrition and fuelling, gear and equipment, recovery, and mindset. Content covers strategy, insights, experiences, decisions, gear, and fuel categories.
• Submit Your Sub-3 Story A feature inviting runners to submit first-person stories about achieving sub-3, coming close, or being on the journey. Stories are reviewed, lightly edited, and published with author credit including name, location, photo, and bio.
• Sub-3 Official Gear (Shop) Official Sub-3 branded merchandise including embroidered technical running caps. First release limited to 30 caps at £30 each. Merchandise designed for runners chasing, achieving, or backing the sub-3 benchmark.
• Sub-3 Newsletter Free email newsletter delivering the latest posts and practical insights from Sub-3 directly to subscribers' inboxes.

Quantifiable outcome

• 17.39% sub-3 rate at top-ranked marathons (Valencia)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Tracksmith: Tracksmith is a premium running apparel brand that operates a significant editorial content platform (the Tracksmith Journal) targeting the same serious amateur runner audience as Sub-3. It blends product and content in a way Sub-3 aspires to via its merchandise line.
• Runner's World: Runner's World is the dominant global running publication covering training, gear, nutrition, and race coverage across all levels. It is the principal broad incumbent Sub-3 would compete with for runner mindshare and brand sponsorship dollars, but its scope extends well beyond the sub-3 niche.
• Strava: Strava is the leading fitness-tracking social platform with deep penetration among amateur marathoners. While it is a data/community platform rather than a publisher, it competes with Sub-3 for runner engagement time and represents the kind of scaled incumbent Sub-3 could either partner with or be overshadowed by.

Direct peers

• BibRave: BibRave is a running community and review platform that connects runners with race organisers and brands via ambassador programs. It overlaps with Sub-3 in the running-content-plus-community model and shares a similar audience of engaged amateur distance runners.
• Believe in the Run: Believe in the Run is a running-focused podcast and content community producing shoe reviews, interviews, and training content. It overlaps with Sub-3 in audience (serious amateur runners) and format (digital content + community), though its scope is broader than the sub-3 niche.
• Marathon Handbook: Marathon Handbook is a digital-first content and review platform dedicated to marathon training, gear, and nutrition. It competes directly with Sub-3 for the attention of amateur competitive marathoners via SEO-driven articles and gear roundups.

Regional players

• Running Room: Running Room is a North American specialty running retailer with a strong content and community programming arm (training clinics, events). It overlaps with Sub-3's audience of dedicated amateur runners and represents a retailer-plus-content model Sub-3 could expand toward.
• Canadian Running Magazine: Canadian Running Magazine is the leading running media brand in Canada, covering training, gear, and events. It is comparable to Sub-3 as a country-focused digital running publication, though Sub-3's UK base and global scope make them geographically distinct competitors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sub3hq
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@sub3hq
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• Instagraminstagram.com/sub3hq
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sub3hq

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sub-3