My marathons

おきなわマラソン (Okinawa Marathon)

09:009:00 AM Okinawa City
Shuri Castle
Shuri Castle. Photograph by 663highland, CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The Okinawa Marathon starts and finishes at the Okinawa Prefectural Comprehensive Athletic Park, on a JAAF-certified course.

The course in short 2 lines
  • Start and finish at the athletic park, the 10K turns at 5 kmStart and finish at the Comprehensive Athletic Park; the 10 km turns near km 5.
  • Six hours fifteen to finish, with gates on the road09:00 start, 15:15 finish closing, 6 h 15 min.
Course notes 2 short reads on the course
km 0 to 42.2GeometryStart and finish at the athletic park, the 10K turns at 5 kmStart and finish at the Comprehensive Athletic Park; the 10 km turns near km 5.

The organiser’s outline for 21 February 2027 gives the Okinawa Prefectural Comprehensive Athletic Park in Okinawa City as both start and finish, and calls the course a Japan Association of Athletics Federations certified route. The 10 km road race shares the marathon’s road and turns around near the 5 km mark.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsSix hours fifteen to finish, with gates on the road09:00 start, 15:15 finish closing, 6 h 15 min.

The 2027 outline sets the marathon start at 9 a.m. and the finish closing at 3:15 p.m., which is 6 hours 15 minutes. Once a gate on the course closes, the organiser says traffic control is lifted at once and runners step onto the pavement, take off bib and timing tag and board the collection vehicle. The field is capped at 13,500 in the marathon and 3,000 in the 10 km.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Okinawa City, 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

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

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.

Get it on Amazon

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

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.

Get it on Amazon

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

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
6:15 h

Race week

Timetable

Sunday 21 February Race day

  1. 09:009:00 AM

    Marathon start Start and finish at the Okinawa Prefectural Comprehensive Athletic Park in Okinawa City, rain or shine.
Cut-offs and other races (3)

  1. 09:409:40 AM

    10 km road race start The 10 km turns at about the 5 km point of the marathon course.

  2. 11:0011:00 AM

    10 km finish closes The 10 km finish closes at 11:00, 1 hour 20 minutes after its start.

  3. 15:153:15 PM

    Marathon finish closes The marathon finish closes at 15:15, 6 hours 15 minutes after the start. After a gate closes, traffic control is lifted straight away and runners are taken off the road.

Times as published by the organiser, in Okinawa City time, checked .

Add to calendar .ics file, times in Okinawa City time

Trip

Getting a place

Entry through the organiser

Entry details on the organiser’s site →

The organiser, a third party. We take no entries and have no part in the race.

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