My marathons

太原马拉松 (Taiyuan Marathon)

The last edition has been run. The next date is not announced yet. Taiyuan
Jinci Temple
Jinci Temple. Photograph by Gisling, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The 2025 Taiyuan Marathon started at 7:30 on 21 September on Wuyi Square, with 40,000 runners from 33 countries and regions.

The course in short 2 lines
  • The 2025 race from Wuyi Square40,000 runners from 33 countries, started on Wuyi Square at 7:30.
  • What changed on the 2025 courseStart moved to Wuyi Square; Xiangyun Bridge and the turn before the finish changed.
Course notes 2 short reads on the course
Whole courseCrowdThe 2025 race from Wuyi Square40,000 runners from 33 countries, started on Wuyi Square at 7:30.

It was a World Athletics Gold Label event and a China Athletics Association A1 race. The men’s marathon was won in 2:09:14 and the women’s in 2:25:50, and 1,094 runners finished the marathon in under three hours, the first year the race gave a sub-3 medal.

Sourced

Whole courseGeometryWhat changed on the 2025 courseStart moved to Wuyi Square; Xiangyun Bridge and the turn before the finish changed.

The start was moved to Wuyi Square so runners could gather more smoothly, and the marathon’s Xiangyun Bridge stretch and the turn-around before the finish were reworked for a smaller gradient and better scenery. Over 40 cheering stations stood along the course.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Taiyuan, 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

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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