Unlike the other five marathons in the World Marathon Majors, the Tokyo Marathon started as a massive race from its first year. Over 25,000 runners finished the Tokyo Marathon in its inaugural year of 2007. Five years later, in 2012, nearly 36,000 runners started the race which travels through the …
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Unlike the other five marathons in the World Marathon Majors, the Tokyo Marathon started as a massive race from its first year. Over 25,000 runners finished the Tokyo Marathon in its inaugural year of 2007. Five years later, in 2012, nearly 36,000 runners started the race which travels through the main tourist attractions of Tokyo.
Historically, Japan is known for its elite marathon races with very strict qualifying standards. Many mass races are also held throughout the nation. But they are, in most part, separate races that cater to different types of runners. At the present time, no other mass marathon in Japan, with the exception of the Tokyo Marathon, has an extensive elite field, and no other elite marathon has such a huge participatory field like the Tokyo Marathon. Thus, the Tokyo Marathon is a very unique marathon in Japan; it is the only marathon in Japan that matches both the elite field depth and mass participation base of the other major marathons in the world.
The Tokyo Marathon is also unique in one other respect. Through its theme, “One Step Ahead,” it symbolizes how each and every person enthusiastically advances step by step, in their own unique way. The Tokyo Marathon is also steadily moving forward to provide people with the joy of running and what lies beyond it.
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Incredible time running through Tokyo
This race was absolutely electric!! The course was so exciting and it was a blast just being able to see temples, shrines, skyscrapers, and towers. The entire course was lined … MORE
This race was absolutely electric!!
The course was so exciting and it was a blast just being able to see temples, shrines, skyscrapers, and towers. The entire course was lined with spectators and volunteers. The volunteers were amazing! They had more volunteers than any marathon I’ve seen in the states. They were so kind and helpful. The spectators were also amazing! Its a very different energy than Chicago though! Less cowbells and very few signs! Aid stations were amazing. I really loved he Pocari Sweat electrolyte drink they give. The course does have out backs for a large portion of the race. Everything was so new and interesting it didn’t bother me much!
They had really great swag, but none of it was free- besides the medal and towel at the end. They don’t make a huge stock of swag and it can be a little stressful and expensive trying to get what you want. Bib pickup was really easy! Asics store was not lol.
If you can’t read or aren’t good at following directions, this might not be the race for you. Its a very organized race and they give very specific instructions. How to enter the race, which aid station to stop at, cut-off times and more. Many people were heartbroken when they were denied entry because they got there after 8:45am. Its such a respectful country, and that includes people respecting their laws and rules. They don’t make exceptions. Just read the dang guidebook and its not that hard.
Checked off another major
This is a tough one to get into. After a few years of trying, I finally had my name pulled. It's a long flight from the US. Right after my … MORE
This is a tough one to get into. After a few years of trying, I finally had my name pulled. It’s a long flight from the US.
Right after my plane landed, I headed to the race expo, luggage in tow. It was an easy subway ride to Big Sky where the expo was held. The line moved quickly and packet pickup was easy. They had volunteers that spoke English. The expo itself was on the next floor. You had to buy any shirts, etc that you wanted. I was ready to get to my hotel, so I didn’t spend much time at the expo.
I gave myself a couple days to get acclimated. Of course I spent all of that extra time exploring the city and spent too much time on my feet.
There is no official race transportation to the race. The subway is accessible from almost anywhere. I had a station about a quarter of a mile from my hotel. They give you a pass at the expo, but it does not work on all the lines, so beware.
There are people everywhere directing you where to go. You’ll have gate and corral info on your bib. The race starts at the government building. You have to go through security before entering the corrals. You are not able to bring in any water bottles. I usually run with one, so I had to train a little differently for this one.
There are several port a pots, but the stand-up ones don’t have a door.
There is not much room to warm up before hand and the race starts promptly at 9:10. The first mile was extremely congested and I could barely move. I assumed people would be running my pace, but I had to weave in and out while trying not to get tripped or trip anyone. The first 3 miles are slightly downhill and the rest is mostly flat. My overall gain was less than 300′. It was a sunny day, but you get some relief from the sun with some of the shadows from the buildings. The course is a few out-and-backs before finishing at the Imperial Palace. There is plenty of water and Pocari Sweat on the course. There were some other treats at some stations, but I didn’t try them.
The race medal is nice, but a little small and plain. They give you what looks like a towel with a hood. It’s a nice change from the traditional space blankets. They give you a bag of goodies at the end as well, but it’s bath salts and some other misc items and not food. It wasn’t NY, but there were still a lot of people out cheering along the course.
It was a good experience and I was happy to get my 5th star.
Thank You Jeff Galloway!
Tokyo has been at the top of my travel bucket list for as long as I remember. I remember when I first started running seeing there was a world major … MORE
Tokyo has been at the top of my travel bucket list for as long as I remember. I remember when I first started running seeing there was a world major marathon in Tokyo and deciding I was going to run it one day. However running and finishing this marathon is complicated especially if you are a back of the packer. I am going to start with how I was successful at the 2 most difficult parts of the race: 1. Getting in and 2. Meeting all the checkpoints. Getting into Tokyo is very complicated. There is a lottery but unlike other world majors the charity bibs are given out before the lottery and pretty much all the tour operators are sold at before the lottery so if you are 100% sure you want to run Tokyo in a specific year you can’t just try for the lottery and make a back up plan later. The charity bib process is complicated as it is a bidding system and the highest bidder gets it and you need to pay it all at once. The actual amount you need to bid tends to be less than most charity bibs for other World Majors ($1000-$2000) but again you can’t raise it you just pay it all at once. There are a few more traditional American charity bibs but they have a pretty big fundraising commitment (most were around $5000 from what I could see). There is also the tour operator route but the Tokyo packages are all really expensive. For example the Marathon Tour packages for Tokyo are about 2.5X what I paid for Berlin which I am running with Marathon Tours in September. So to be honest I really didn’t want to do any of these things but there is a fourth way to gain entry which I was lucky enough to snag a spot with and that is the “RUN as ONE – GLOBAL Virtual Run Series”. Basically they have several of these virtual half marathons where you pay ~$10 to enter and have about a 1% change of being selected for entry into the race. You still have to pay the race fee. I lucked out and won with the last virtual race for 2026 and found out I got into the race in April 2025 way before the charity, tour operators and general lottery start accepting applicants. If you are interested in running Tokyo definitely check out these virtual races. It is possible to win entry with them. Now that I had secured entry my next challenge was to make sure I was trained well enough to make the check points. The Tokyo Marathon has a 7 hour time limit but it is from the first runner and there are several cutoffs during the race and some are tight. It is really more of a 6:15-6:30 time limit and the last cutoff required about a 14 minute/mile pace from the last runner. I had a stress fracture a few years ago and was significantly slower afterwards (my CIM time of 6:33 post stress fracture was not going to cut it here). I did several things to improve my speed. The main one was I switched to the Galloway Method and have been pretty much exclusively doing run-walk intervals. It was a very emotional week as Jeff Galloway passed away a few days before the marathon and I knew I had to complete it using his method for him. The second thing I did to become faster was join a local run club to force myself to do interval workouts, hill repeats, core workouts and all those fun things I have a hard time doing on my own. So along with thanking Jeff Galloway, I also want to thank Millennium Running for their workouts. The third thing I would recommend doing if possible is to run a few half marathons in hot weather prior to the race as Tokyo can be pretty hot in March and it made it much easier being used to running in the heat which I wouldn’t be able to do if I did all my training in New England. That is the background on how I gained entry and how I got fast enough to meet the cutoffs now onto the race. For the trip we left for Tokyo about 1 week before the race. I traveled with my mom. There was actually a direct flight from Boston to Tokyo. We spent a couple days at Disney and then stayed at Kimpton Shinjuku from Wednesday through Monday. The Kimpton was a bit pricier than I usually pay for a race hotel but I saved so much money not having to go through charity or a tour operator I decided to treat myself. It was a very nice and convenient hotel. Due to travel plans in Tokyo I went to the expo Saturday afternoon. I heard if you want merch you need to go earlier. Honestly I don’t really care about merch as I’d rather spend my money on races and travel and also I was nervous I might not finish the race and didn’t want to DNF and then then have all this merch (don’t worry I didn’t DNF). Bib pick-up was pretty quick Saturday early afternoon. The expo was big but organized where to go. Race morning was quite smooth. It had one of the smoothest starts I’ve every seen. The race starts at 9:10 but you can enter the corrals as early as 7:00am. I was in the second to last corral. I arrived at 7:00am as I wanted to be in the front to have as much time as possible. It was really well marked and easy to figure out where to go as we are each assigned a gate to enter. Security was very quick this early. I was happy they changed the rules this year and you could bring a running flask. I couldn’t bring my usual Nathan’s water bottle but I bought a fitly soft flask and hydration holder which worked well. They had an aid station you could get water near the entrance of the corral. I did not risk using the porta potties as the lines seemed long. It was long waiting to start but there were lots of runners to meet and chat with. The start was quite smooth with the corrals joining each other one by one. It took me about 22 minutes to cross the start line and pretty much every runner had crossed without 30 minutes so I would assume a 6:30 time limit (again though some check points may require a faster pace). Luckily the course is pretty easy. It is technically net downhill but all the downhill is the first few Kms and then it is mostly flat with a couple little rollers but nothing I would call a “hill.” I had an excellent pace the first half though knew I was going a little fast to maintain that pace. However I wanted to bank time to make the time cutoffs. I did slow down a bit the second half but still maintained a decent pace of under 15 minute/mile. The course is mostly good. It’s a bit annoying how there are a lot of switchbacks and turns so even though it is flat, it is really hard to get the tangents and most people (including me) end up running a lot more than 26.2 miles. My Garmin had almost 27 miles. The weather can also make it difficult as it was a bit hot. It was not as hot as last year luckily but it was in the low 60’s and there is no shade and you run in the heat of the day. Luckily I had a lot of heat training this year from my travels. The scenery is pretty cool running through Tokyo. Tokyo is a huge city. It makes NYC seem small so it is a lot of concrete but there are cool buildings and some temples and shrines. I honestly though was more concentrated on my pace than scenery. There is a ton of spectator support. The whole course was lined with spectators. In general people in Japan are not as loud and rambunctious as America so it is a bit quieter but there is plenty of entertainment and people cheering you on. This help my speed. They also stayed for everyone and even though I was a back of the packer, I always had a ton of support. For a race with strict time cutoffs, it was very back of the pack friendly if you could make them. The race was well organized. It was clearly marked with Km markers every Km and mile markers every 5 miles. The checkpoints and time cutoffs were also well marked. Luckily I was fast enough that I didn’t need to focus on them too much. The only organization aspect that could be a bit improved was the aid stations were a bit chaotic. To be fair not many races with this many runners have super organized aid stations and luckily we did not run out of water or aid this year. However the first tables pretty much were always out so the last runners only had a couple of tables to get aid from and it was a free for all. The aid stations had water and Pocari sweat for electrolyte drink. They had very interesting nutrition options including lots of Japanese snacks. Of course my biggest fear this race was having GI upset and needing multiple bathroom breaks so I played it safe and only used my own nutrition (Other tips for those with a sensitive stomach – I had my pre race dinner at Hard Rock Cafe and got a safe meal I knew would sit well and enjoyed delicious Japanese food earlier in the week and after the race but not the meal before the race, I also tried the Pocari sweat a few times to make sure it sat well with me). I had a really fun time running in such a big city with so many runners and I was very happy with my performance. The tightest cutoff was the last one and I cried when I made it as all my hard work paid off. With how the cutoffs worked this year if you made the last one you were pretty much guaranteed to finish. I was very happy with my finish time as I was 25 minutes faster than CIM and 45 minutes faster than Athens my other marathons since my stress fracture. I was so happy to finish! At the finish line you get the medal. It is a bit small for a marathon but I like the design and ribbon. I have learned not to expect huge medals from international races. The finisher robe was white and disappointing this year. The post race snacks were odd. It was a banana and a piece of cheese and a lot of beauty products given to us. I have also learned to only expect a banana for finish line food in international races so I guess I appreciated the cheese. One slightly annoying thing is they give you a metrocard but it only works at Tokyo station. I entered the closest station to the area I was directed to go post race and it was not Tokyo station and I didn’t realize I couldn’t use the metro card there until after I walked down to the station and didn’t want to walk any more so had to pay for a ticket to catch the subway at that station. Oh well it was easy to navigate back to my hotel. Overall I had a blast running such a big race in such a cool city and I am so proud and happy I was able to make all the time cutoffs at the check points. I have heard this is one of the weaker world majors from a lot of runners but I loved the race and can’t wait to run the other ones.
Sun, Shrines & out and backs
This race was well coordinated and produced. I came into town at around 3 PM on Friday and immediately got a Pasmo card. I highly recommend getting this card and … MORE
This race was well coordinated and produced. I came into town at around 3 PM on Friday and immediately got a Pasmo card. I highly recommend getting this card and putting at least ¥5000 on it as it is a credit card you can use for transportation and essentials virtually everywhere. I stayed in Shinjuku city so that I could walk to the start line. I went to The expo which is a far train ride way in Tokyo bay on Saturday, and was not crowded. The expo was located at Tokyo big sight which was ideal for the number of participants. Bib pick up and Check in was straight forward with no lines. They put a wristband on your wrist, which ended up causing a distraction throughout the night, during the run and even me dropping my phone during the run. After receiving my charity official shirt and confirming bib operation chip, I went down to the convention which was large. It included all the typical race gear products and also had some official posters for cheering. There was a nice official Tokyo marathon souvenir shop where I was able to snag a magnet. I then went up to the second half of the expo which had more assortment of running gear along with the charity teams. If you visit your charity team booth, you will also receive your charity group T-shirt. I did not purchase any official gear, as they were at pricey and not very attractive this year.
On race day morning organizers issued high heat, however I prefer to run in warmer weather. I walked to the start line from my hotel, which was about 2.5 km. There were separate zones to enter based off your number, so you have to be careful and plan this out accordingly to save time. Everything is well blocked off and you have to go through a security check before entering your corral. The race started on time at 9:10 with a special guitar ceremony by Marty Freidman. There was ample amount of disposable bins for throw away gear. The start did not feel too congested and was able to run at my normal pace after the 1st mile. After a few miles in the outback began. I was able to see the leader, at mile 10 of the run. The race included plenty of Porta potties both at the start, throughout and at the end, should you have an emergency. There’s also plenty of aid stations and water/electrolyte stations were well placed on the left-hand side each stand. They’re even numbers two track if you had a strategy, which was nice. Streets were very well kept with no potholes and no trash. As the run progressed, so did the traffic. This was on account of the out and backs that took out a lot of space. Much of the run, looked the same due to the outbacks. There were plenty of photographers throughout the race, and even gave you notice of where they were with a sign which was cool. There was a lot of chearing throughout the race, but not the amount of the other majors and as loud. There wasn’t any loud music throughout the race either and when there were, it was live Japanese bands playing. On the last mile of the marathon, you had to run through cobblestone streets, which was not ideal. This was the area with the most crowd support throughout the entire race.
Crossing the finish line was an unforgettable experience, but was killed by them rushing you out of the shoot.I always like to get a picture with my medal in front of the finish line, as organizers were yelling at me to move forward. I didn’t listen to them and took my picture anyways. We then were forced to turn right and we heard in like cattle out. The post race was very unusual. Received a water, electrolyte, drink, wet towel, hand wipes, bath salts, beauty products, and a banana. You then received your race blanket. This years was boring, plain white with the marathon and year. There should have been more nutrition at the finish line such as carbohydrates and protein. All in all it was a scenic race, however I wish that organizers can do away with the out and back. For a major, there is way too many of them. There shouldn’t be any in general. I also wish that WMM would do away with the wristbands. Runners don’t like them, they are distracting and unnecessary.
Surprising Heat on Cool Day
What worked: I was able to get my bib and purchase swag after arriving Friday afternoon. By that time, most Asics "swag" was sold out, yet there's a ton of … MORE
What worked: I was able to get my bib and purchase swag after arriving Friday afternoon. By that time, most Asics “swag” was sold out, yet there’s a ton of stuff available in the lower level. The next day I rehearsed getting to the starting area which did help a lot – this was recommended in the guide. On race morning, I was ready to go, and arrived two hours prior to race start with everything I needed (and no excess). During the race, I had ample access to water. The hairpin turns were set on wiiiiide boulevards, and easy to navigate. Finish area was easy to navigate around, though I could have used some rehearsal navigating the under-street station to get me towards the southeast parts of Ginza in which I stayed.
What could have been better: Allegedly, those who had needed more time to complete the distance did not have hydration available to them. Whether it was a lack of cups or lack of water to distribute, this was a precarious situation with regards to the rising heat. For my experience, most of the out-n-backs ran directly into or away from the sunlight, with not much shelter. If you’re planning on running this race with weather as warm as this year (65˚F/18˚C at finish under sun), prepare yourself in training for potential of minimal hydration. (That’s something I had taken for granted with prolonged treadmill training during icy late-winter days in my hometown.)
TL,DNR? Get things done as early as possible with regards to the expo. Rehearse how to get to the starting area. Prepare yourself and have a plan regarding nutrition. Have fun, be safe.
Bucket List Race
Incredible course, excellent and efficient production, good swag. What’s there not to like? Seems like a lot of people didn’t read the rulebook on this one. Lots of complainers about … MORE
Incredible course, excellent and efficient production, good swag. What’s there not to like?
Seems like a lot of people didn’t read the rulebook on this one. Lots of complainers about the cutoffs and lots of people who didn’t understand the water system. I didn’t see any stations that were fully empty, just the first table or two due to people not going to their allocated table.
I had a great time.
Not My Favorite
It’s a good race that needs some kinks worked out. A week before the race it showed it would be a hot day. I don’t think the race event people … MORE
It’s a good race that needs some kinks worked out. A week before the race it showed it would be a hot day. I don’t think the race event people took that into consideration. They ran out of cups, and then around mile 15 for me, but I had someone tell me at mile 14 for them, they ran out of both water and sports drink. How is that even possible in a world marathon major race? They should have anticipated that the runners would need to hydrate more. What made it worse is the race is very strict on you not being able to bring plastic water bottles, which I typically carry, into the start area. So, I can’t bring my own water with me and then they ran out?!! Fortunately, they did get more water and sports drink around mile 20 and I was able to get to the finish line and get my medal.
I also was not overly impressed by the crowd support. There were a lot of spectators but they were very lackluster. I didn’t really get any energy from them.
So, it wasn’t a bad race, just not what I works have expected from a major race with over 38,000 runners.
Lots of Plusses but Needs Improvements
There are many things to like about this marathon - the course, while not especially scenic is flat and the volunteers are helpful and friendly. But for an Abbott Major, … MORE
There are many things to like about this marathon – the course, while not especially scenic is flat and the volunteers are helpful and friendly. But for an Abbott Major, it definitely needs some logistical improvements/upgrades. I hate to be too hard on the water/hydration situation because it was a hot day, but the water/fluids situation needs significant improvement moving forward. As a closer to the back of pack runner, I experienced stops with no cups (water or sports drink poured into my hand – eventually I got a cup out of the trash and carried it with me), stops with cups but no drinks, and a number of stops that had been shut down because they had neither. Volunteers were doing what they could – we saw them running into businesses and coming out with pitchers of water on some stops – but the situation really needs to be improved. Also, as many have said, the finish set up is also very different than the other majors, you walk a long way before you are given hydration/food and the water bottle is small, and the food is not plentiful. Tokyo is a wonderful city, we absolutely loved it but of all the majors race wise, this was probably my least favorite.
Serious issues with hydration/nutrition
The only marathon I have ever done that does not allow runners to carry their own hydration/bottles - and then proceeds to run out of water and cups on a … MORE
The only marathon I have ever done that does not allow runners to carry their own hydration/bottles – and then proceeds to run out of water and cups on a hot day over the last 6-10 miles. Runners were collapsing and vomiting. Then at the finish line, there was NO FOOD other than a small piece of cheese. They gave me bath salts and body wash, along with a TINY bottle of water. This is a dangerous situation, and well below the expectations of a world major. Also, I ran with a tour group and we were not given a race shirt! To be positive – the volunteers were wonderful, and the course is flat. The poncho will get lots of use as a pool/beach cover up.
No water at miles 18-20
No water or Pocairi Sweat available at stations from mile 18-20 or so for back-of-back runners. One had water but no cups. No on-course toilets available (signs for toilets from … MORE
No water or Pocairi Sweat available at stations from mile 18-20 or so for back-of-back runners. One had water but no cups. No on-course toilets available (signs for toilets from 300m up to 2km off the course) though porto-potties available at the start staging area.
They ran out of cups and water!!
For a race that does not allow us to carry any personal hydration - running out of cups and waters is just unforgivable!! I liked that they tried to manage … MORE
For a race that does not allow us to carry any personal hydration – running out of cups and waters is just unforgivable!! I liked that they tried to manage how we get it (giving table numbers) but then running out of cups and waters is so bad!!! This is a Major for crying out loud!! Overall this was a very flat course but I think I lost almost 15 min trying to find water!!! And no race shirt – whats up with that. I would rather they charge us $50 extra but at least give us a race shirt!!
Fun and unique race in WMM
It is very well organizad with many volunteers willing to help at any time. The guidebook explains everything, so read it throughly. Many people dress up in various costumes. MORE
It is very well organizad with many volunteers willing to help at any time. The guidebook explains everything, so read it throughly. Many people dress up in various costumes.
It’s Tokyo! And at least I finished.
I’m always a slow runner, but 1 week before the Tokyo Marathon I fell on the ice during my last lengthier run and slammed my ribs. So, I wasn’t sure … MORE
I’m always a slow runner, but 1 week before the Tokyo Marathon I fell on the ice during my last lengthier run and slammed my ribs. So, I wasn’t sure if I would even be able to run the race. I did run it, and while I was very slow, I managed to finish it. So, from a slow runner’s perspective, here are some thoughts: I got to the expo the afternoon of the 1st day it opened. I got my bib and shirt very quickly and without problems. The official Asics merchandise booth was a mob scene as expected, but there were a lot of other booths and merchandise available. On race day itself, everyone gets a specific gate and corral to enter. The volunteers were wonderful and plentiful, and made getting to the correct place a breeze. There were a bunch of porta potties before you entered your corral (even men-specific ones with no doors—never seen before, but they reduce the lines for the standard ones). There are no porta potties in the corrals, so do your business before you get in there. The race starts at 9:10am, and it goes off gun time. Your clock starts not when you cross the start line, but when the gun goes off. And yes, they do have cutoffs throughout the race. I knew that long before the race, and planned on them. Even if you start from the back of the pack, if you run a quicker 1st 11K, once you make it past the 1st 2 cutoffs, there’s more forgiveness built in. Once I got past those 2, I enjoyed the race and the crowds. The volunteers again were fantastic. On the course, they’re friendly and excited for the runners. They were always smiling, and they tried to help as best they could. Yes, there were problems with aid stations running out of water and cups, and it was extremely hot, and you weren’t allowed to carry your own bottles (unless they met specific requirements). Still, the volunteers did what they could. The course is mostly flat, and there are several out-and-backs. I don’t mind those—you get to see some of the faster runners, and you may get to see the buses that pick up those who don’t make the cutoff (in case you needed more incentive to run faster). I loved the race. And I loved Tokyo in general. I stayed in Shinjuku near the start. The food was fabulous and so inexpensive. I truly didn’t want to leave. I got into this race through the lottery on my 1st attempt—unlike NYC where I’m 0/13 attempts to get in), so there’s always hope to get in.
Fun race in an enormous city
Lots of good things about this race. Almost everything is very well organized. Good support along the course from fans. Things to be aware of: - Merch: if merchandise is … MORE
Lots of good things about this race. Almost everything is very well organized. Good support along the course from fans.
Things to be aware of:
– Merch: if merchandise is important to you, get to the expo on Thursday when it opens and go straight to the asics area, then go get your bib. Jackets sold out in a couple hours and so did many other things. I went to bib area first on Thursday morning and by the time I got to the merch section there was a 2 hour line.
– where to stay: I’d recommend staying near the start area in Shinjuku. It’s a fun area of the city to be and easy to get back to once the race is done. I stayed at Hotel Century Southern Tower which was great and had a delicious breakfast they served early on race day.
– you have to order the race day shirt, I’d highly recommend getting the signature shirt. I got in with charity and defaulted to the charity shirt which was no where near as good as the signature shirt.
A Major That Needs Improvement
First the Good: 1. Course was well marked. KM signs visible. 2. Friendly volunteers. 3. Fairly flat course with a few minor hills and bridges. 4. Everything started right on … MORE
First the Good:
1. Course was well marked. KM signs visible.
2. Friendly volunteers.
3. Fairly flat course with a few minor hills and bridges.
4. Everything started right on time.
Now some observations and criticism.
1. At start, with 5 pre-designated entry gates and corrals, getting to baggage drop and corral in time was not easy.
2. Toilets were not on street or sidewalks. You had to travel a significant distance down a side street, and then back adding at least a couple hundred meters.
3. Aid stations ran out of fluids and/or cups the last 10k. Some people had to drink directly from bottles shared by others or cup hands. Other stations had cups but no fluids. Inexcusable for a WMM event. The temps were warm which is not in the event management’s control but how they prep for it is.
4. At finish metals and drink/food were a distance to walk. There was a large empty park there but instead, runners had to travel some distance. Then….
5. I had to walk about 8-10 blocks, based on my bib color, to get baggage.
Glad I got my star but would not otherwise make this a destination without some improvement.
Mixed feelings
I received notification from Tokyo Marathon that I got accepted by lottery entry! I think it was July or August of 2024 that I got the email. But there was … MORE
I received notification from Tokyo Marathon that I got accepted by lottery entry! I think it was July or August of 2024 that I got the email. But there was only 1 problem, my wife’s due date was February 2025. I ALWAYS travel with my family to marathons. My wife always wanted to go to Tokyo. I was originally planning on deferring the entry, however I learned that Tokyo doesn’t allow for deferment unless you are female runner and pregnant. So I was really torn now, I went back and forth but my told me to just go to Tokyo and run the race by myself. I booked a trip to Japan for 1 week, with the main agenda of running the marathon and seeing a few of my relatives and close friends and coming back.
I flew into Haneda airport which I prefer over Narita just because it’s a heck of a lot closer to Tokyo. I ended up staying at my brother’s house in Yokohama so I really can’t give any advice as far as hotel options and where to stay. I flew into on Thursday, reached my brother’s house late Thursday and had dinner. On Friday, I went to the Expo which was held at Tokyo Big Sight, which is like a huge convention hall. It has its own dedicated train stop, as soon as you hop out of the station you will see Tokyo Marathon volunteers wearing blue jacket guiding you to the entrance, it really is fool proof. The Japanese folks are meticulously organized and it shows. I went to the expo, they open at 10 am, I think I got there around noon on Friday and it wasn’t bad. The line to pickup the bib had maybe 6 people ahead of me. Bring your runner registration and your passport. They will give you a bib and wristband. Do not take off the wristband until you are finished with the entire race. After the bib pick up, you pick up your pre-purchased shirt/singlet if you were lucky enough to buy it before it sold out. O lines at all for that part. Then you enter the vendor and photo op area of expo. There really was no huge lines, I heard that the ASICS store had 1 hour wait to get in but I wasn’t interested so I would not be able able to confirm if that is factual or not. I thought the expo was we organized and I had great experience, easy access from train station.
Race day: I usually don’t sleep too well on marathon days but I woke up around 3 am, I don’t know if it was due to jet lag or being anxious or both. I think I headed for the train around 6 am, again I stayed in Yokohama so if you stay in Tokyo, I am sure you don’t have to leave that early. My brother recommended that I get off at Nishi-shinjyuku station as it is a much shorter walk, and he was right. Again, as soon as you get off the train you will see volunteers wearing blue jackets guiding you which way to go. I walked maybe 5 minutes and went through the gate and security check. Dropped off my bag check. Everything was smooth as can be. The race started promptly at 9:10 am. I was In corral D, and I was close enough to see the confetti and the opening ceremony which was pretty cool. Now one warning about Tokyo is that they have STRICT cutoff points, they will enforce it. All in all 9 cutoff points. The time for the cutoff points are set by guntime, so I was a bit worried because I was in Corral D so I expected to cross the start line 30 to 45 minutes after the gun, but in actuality I started 4 minutes after the gun. So you move pretty quickly at the start, I am not sure how many corrals there were but I would imagine that last corral probably started 10 to 15 minutes after the gun. I was never close to being cutoff and I am a pretty darn slow runner. However, the course itself has a lot of double backs and I saw some people getting cutoff at the checkpoint which always gives me an awful feeling. I can’t imagine traveling to Tokyo and being cutoff. I understand it’s a huge city and they have to open the roads back up but I hope they change it in the future. The course is flat, many of the landmarks such as Tokyo sky tree and Asakusa are passed which is pretty cool. The volunteers are just down right awesome, so energetic I just can’t say enough wonderful things about them. It gives me a smile every time I saw an old Japanese grandma yelling as loud as she could “Fight”, “Gambatte” with a fist pump. The only issue I had, and it was a pretty big issue to me were the water stations. The last 5 or 6 water stations ran out of water, or they consolidated the tables to 1 or 2 which created a big crowd. It was hot race day, 68 degrees. They had each water stations numbered, the last number on your bib is the designated water stations they wanted you to hit up. I was number 2, so the first few stations I went to table 2, no issues. Then slowly but surely I got to the water stations and the table for number 2 was already packed up and broken down. Now like I said, I am a pretty slow runner but there had to have been at least another hour of runners behind me, I can only imagine what they had to go through towards the end. Tokyo being a world major, this was pretty disappointing to me. I almost gave 3 shoes but in my opinion it gets 3.5 shoes and rounded up just because how wonderful the volunteers were and the feast of the race being so organized. After the race you get a medal and the iconic terry clothe gown! I met up with my family at Tokyo station, my brother booked us a bullet train ticket back to Yokohama, which ended up being about 10 minutes train ride but I felt like VIP riding in a Shinkansen after the race hahahaha. Overall it was great experience and I am glad I made the choice to run the marathon.
Great World Major
Course: extremely fast that felt much faster than Chicago with the first 5k being downhill Logistically: it is not the easiest race to navigate before or afterwards. Much more difficult … MORE
Course: extremely fast that felt much faster than Chicago with the first 5k being downhill
Logistically: it is not the easiest race to navigate before or afterwards. Much more difficult than NYC
Swag: other than the post-race robe, the rest of the swag left a lot to be desired. The medal may be the smallest I’ve ever gotten and the race entry does not include a shirt. You must pre-order it well before
Expo: a very large and nice expo. However, it is chaos trying to purchase official race merchandise where many items sold out within minutes
Well supported course with strict cutoff
As one of the 6 world majors, getting into the race is not easy. But the race now has charity entry spots making it easier to gain entry. Expo packet … MORE
As one of the 6 world majors, getting into the race is not easy. But the race now has charity entry spots making it easier to gain entry.
Expo packet pick up lines are long for certain groups (charity runners?), for other groups, short. Especially on day 1. If you want official branded merchandise get there when it opens and fight the crowd. There was >1hr wait to enter the merchandise area after packet pickup, and I arrived at the expo 30 min before it opened. (although I did get a slow line for packet p/u).
Race shirts are available for purchase, but are an extra cost, and the sizes run small. (Japanese 3x is more like a US XL)
No drinks (other than small boxed water) is allowed in the start area, so drink down before you arrive.
The corrals move efficiently to the start, but you are in a mass mob. It will carry you along for the first few miles before it begins to thin out.
The race course is pretty flat. There are a few rolling hills, but none are very high or long.
Course support is excellent! The aid stations are divided into 5 groups, based on the last digit of your bib number (but many runners couldn’t figure that out.) Pocari Sweat was the electrolyte of the race. Plenty of porta potties and restrooms along the way. The early ones can have lines of up to 20 minutes! (They list wait times at the entrance to the area.)
The cutoffs for the race are real. The second cutoff is probably the hardest for slower runners. Overall it is about a 14:15 pace (or so) to meet all of the cutoffs.)
The exit to the race is a little bit of a maze. You are routed out based on your bib color. So if you are meeting family or friends, figure out where you will be exiting, or meet up at the family area. (which I never found.)
Make sure you give yourself several more days post race to explore the city and/or country!! (I explored Tokyo and Osaka this trip.)
Need to consider wave starts
The start is a chaotic with runners shoving and pushing. I was knocked down accidemtly and fell on my head and knee; could not finish the race. With about 38,000 … MORE
The start is a chaotic with runners shoving and pushing. I was knocked down accidemtly and fell on my head and knee; could not finish the race. With about 38,000 runners, and one street — along with time cut-offs and a 7 hour limit — they need to consider wave starts at least for the safety’s sake.
Tokyo - the Robe is EPIC
Expo: Very controversial. They don’t make a lot of gear. It is usually sold out pretty quickly on the first day. If this is important to you, you should buy … MORE
Expo: Very controversial. They don’t make a lot of gear. It is usually sold out pretty quickly on the first day. If this is important to you, you should buy whatever you can in advance. I bought the race T-shirt in advance and was content. Others were very upset. There was mass chaos over jackets at the expo. The expo had lots of photo opp areas. Non Tokyo Marathon gear was available. Getting the bibs etc. was a smooth process on Day 2.
Course: Nice flat course with ample support along the way. There are some out and backs. I know the very fast runners can sometimes find the turns frustrating but I loved that I got a glimpse of the elites as they ran through. I ran for DMHC and they had 11 cheer stations along the course to support DMHC runners. Bins were available at the start to discard clothing. Allow yourself 45 minutes or so if you need a restroom before the race. I didn’t think the restroom situation was as dire as some have expressed in the past.
My Garmin said I ran almost 26.8 miles. I’m used to a lot of races that have drink stations on both sides of the path so I always gravitate right. I think this caused me to put the extra distance in since they were all on the left.
Post Race: The medal is very nice. The post race robe is epic. I love it! My swag score would probably be lower without it. The post race drinks and snacks were nothing to write home about. I wish they had protein to offer after. You have to buy the race T-shirt separate (I feel like most include it).
I ran for DMHC and they had a nice post race event with food, drinks and even a chance to meet Ronald McDonald. 🙂 It was a great event but be prepared to walk a bit after the race to get there.
City: Tokyo is a great city! There are lots of things to do. Do your best to understand the train lines before you go. I stayed in Shinjuku. This was great access to the Start of the race. The train station is HUGE and I found it very confusing at first. After a few days I got my bearings and figured it out. I was never able to get money into my Suica card in Apple wallet (it doesn’t like Visa cards). I got Yen when I arrived and was able to get a physical Suica card and fill it with the cash.
The time change didn’t have a massive impact on me there. I’m thankful for that. I know that isn’t always the case. I was in Tokyo for 6 days which was sufficient if you have limited vacation time and a family at home like me.
Registering: My experience is through the charity route. Some of the social media pages can be helpful for timing etc. (World Marathon Majors is a good one). 100,000 yen (around $700 when I applied) is the minimum but it is a bidding process. You submit your amount and you pay it if you get in. If you need to fundraise you need to think through how you handle this. Since I love RMHC (DMHC in Japan) I knew this was the charity for me. I also knew that I really wanted to run this race in 2024 so I bid above the minimum at a point that I felt pretty sure about getting in.