My marathons

Hokkaido Marathon

Run on 30 August 2026. Next race: date not out yet. Sapporo
Sapporo TV Tower
Sapporo TV Tower. Photograph by ノボホショコロトソ, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

After a loop through the south of the city, the course heads out along Shinkawa-dori to a turning point at the northwest edge of Sapporo, then returns to Hokkaido University.

The course in short 3 lines
  • Out along Shinkawa-dori and backThe northwest leg is run out to a turning point and back.
  • Through the campus to the red-brick officeThe finish is reached through a university campus and a red-brick landmark.
  • A late-August race with a heat ruleIn heat, check points can be added and closing times moved earlier.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGeometryOut along Shinkawa-dori and backThe northwest leg is run out to a turning point and back.

After the loop through the south of the city and up Soseigawa-dori, which runs partly through a tunnel, the course turns onto Shinkawa-dori and follows it, with Kotoni-Sakaemachi-dori, Shinkotoni 2-jo-dori and Nishino-Tonden-dori, to the turning point on Shinkawa-dori at the northwest edge of Sapporo. From there it returns to Hokkaido University and the finish. The start and the finish are both on Ekimae-dori at Odori.

Sourced

km 39 to 42.2FinishThrough the campus to the red-brick officeThe finish is reached through a university campus and a red-brick landmark.

The final kilometres leave the northwest leg for Hokkaido University, pass the Former Hokkaido Government Office Building, known as the Red Brick Office, and come down Ekimae-dori to the finish at Odori. The check point at 41.5 km stands at the building’s north gate and closes at 14:35.

Sourced

Whole courseConditionsA late-August race with a heat ruleIn heat, check points can be added and closing times moved earlier.

The 2026 race was run on 30 August, with the first wave away at 8:30 and the second at 8:45. A forecast of 28 °C WBGT or higher can lead to the race being cancelled, decided just before or on the day from the Ministry of the Environment’s forecasts. Depending on conditions, extra check points can be set right before the start and closing times moved earlier.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Sapporo, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7mile 4.4
  2. km 14.1mile 8.7
  3. km 21.1mile 13.1
  4. km 28.1mile 17.5
  5. km 35.2mile 21.8

Our pick: SiS BETA Fuel gel, box of 6, strawberry and lime. 40 g of carbohydrate a gel, about twice a usual gel, from two kinds of sugar your body takes up side by side.

Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.

Get it on Amazon

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In Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Salted Caramel, 24-pack, the best seller there.

Outside the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and Ireland, Spain and Portugal, Italy, the rest of the EU and Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Chocolate Outrage, 24-pack on Amazon.com, the best seller there.

Anti-chafe
Compeed Anti-blister stick
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

An invisible layer before the start keeps seams, straps and shoes from rubbing skin raw.

Put it on before you leave for the start: heels and toes, inner thighs, under a bra or heart-rate strap.

Try it on a long run first, like everything you use on race day.

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Number belt
A race number belt
Illustration · drag to turn

Compressport Race Belt

Holds your bib without safety pins through your top, with loops for up to 8 gels.

Clip the bib on the night before, so it goes on with your shorts in the morning.

Keep the number on the front, where officials and photographers can see it.

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Electrolytes
A tube of electrolyte tablets
Illustration · drag to turn

SiS Hydro electrolyte tablets, tube of 20

One tablet in a bottle puts back some of the salt you sweat out.

One tablet in 500 ml of water in the hour before the start.

Only if you have used them in training: nothing new on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Blister plasters
Compeed Blister plasters, medium, 6
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

One in a pocket cushions a blister if one starts.

Put it on clean, dry skin and leave it until it comes off by itself.

Give a couple to whoever comes to cheer, so they are there at the km you need them.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
distance
42.2 km26.2 mi
cut-off
6:00 h
first held
1987

An August marathon through central Sapporo, from Ekimae-dori at Odori round the south of the city, out along Shinkawa-dori and back.

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Questions about the Hokkaido Marathon

How do I enter the Hokkaido Marathon?

Entry is through the organiser. Entry fee: JP¥16,500 (JP¥22,000 from abroad, for the 2026 race). Entry details on the organiser’s site

What is the time limit at the Hokkaido Marathon?

Runners have 6 hours to finish.

More races in Japan and in August