My marathons

下関海響マラソン (Shimonoseki Kaikyo Marathon)

Run on 1 November 2026. Next race: date not out yet. Shimonoseki
Kanmonkyo Bridge
Kanmonkyo Bridge. Photograph by Ka23 13, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The JAAF-certified marathon starts in front of Kaikyo Messe Shimonoseki, turns at Chofu Sotoura, crosses the Hikoshima Bridge to a second turn at the Kajikuri ramp of the North Bypass, and returns over the bridge to the same finish.

The course in short 3 lines
  • Out to Chofu, back past the start, over the Hikoshima Bridge and backTwo turns, one at Chofu and one at the Kajikuri ramp, with the Hikoshima Bridge crossed twice.
  • Eleven cut-off gates, from 3.3 km to 40.3 kmSix-hour limit and eleven gates at 8:20 per km, from 9:06 at 3.3 km to 14:14 at 40.3 km.
  • 10,000 marathon places, first come, sold out in 202610,000 first-come places at 12,000 yen; the 2026 marathon sold out.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
km 0 to 42.2GeometryOut to Chofu, back past the start, over the Hikoshima Bridge and backTwo turns, one at Chofu and one at the Kajikuri ramp, with the Hikoshima Bridge crossed twice.

The organiser lists the 2026 route in order: the start on Kaikyo-dori in front of Kaikyo Messe Shimonoseki, the first turn at Chofu Sotoura, Higashi-Yamato-cho, the Hikoshima Bridge, the turn at the Kajikuri ramp of National Route 191, the Shimonoseki North Bypass, then back over the Hikoshima Bridge and Higashi-Yamato-cho to the finish in front of Kaikyo Messe. Near the first turn, the organiser says, the stone walls of the Kushizaki castle site show on a small hill by the sea.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsEleven cut-off gates, from 3.3 km to 40.3 kmSix-hour limit and eleven gates at 8:20 per km, from 9:06 at 3.3 km to 14:14 at 40.3 km.

The organiser sets the gates by converting 8:20 per km, which gives 36 minutes at the first gate, 2 h 19 at the fifth gate near the port’s international terminal (about 15.7 km), 4 h 08 at the eighth gate on the Kajikuri ramp (about 28.7 km) and 5 h 44 at the eleventh gate (about 40.3 km). Runners who miss a gate, or fall far behind between gates, stop and are taken back by the support bus. The marathon starts at 8:30.

Sourced

Whole courseCrowd10,000 marathon places, first come, sold out in 202610,000 first-come places at 12,000 yen; the 2026 marathon sold out.

The organiser’s outline gives the marathon quota as 10,000 runners, “先着” (first come), and the 2km fun run quota as 1,000. The fee is 12,000 yen, or 13,000 yen as a charity entry. Entries opened on 15 May 2026 at 10:00, and the organiser’s entry page says the field filled. Runners must be 18 or older, high-school students excepted. Priority “S block” starts go to previous-year top-ten finishers and certified local athletes.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Shimonoseki, 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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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

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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

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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

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