My marathons

Yamagata Marugoto Marathon

The organiser has not published a date. Yamagata
Yamagata Castle
Yamagata Castle. Photograph by kamoseiro, CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The half marathon turns at the Bunshokan, the former prefectural office built in 1916 and now an Important Cultural Property.

The course in short 3 lines
  • The Bunshokan marks the turnThe Bunshokan, a 1916 prefectural office, is where the course turns back.
  • Up the Mamigasaki river, then downUphill along the Mamigasaki river to the Zao interchange, downhill after the turn.
  • The 2026 half: 2 h 50 min, 6,000 places2026: 9:05 start, 2 h 50 min limit, 6,000 places, a new loop in Kajo Park.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseLandmarkThe Bunshokan marks the turnThe Bunshokan, a 1916 prefectural office, is where the course turns back.

Before it, the route crosses the Chitose bridge into the Dōmachi foundry quarter, circles Kajo Park on the site of Yamagata Castle and runs down Nanokamachi, the main street where the Hanagasa festival parade passes and where the organiser expects the loudest support. The Yamagata City Hall stands on the way.

Sourced

Whole courseGradientUp the Mamigasaki river, then downUphill along the Mamigasaki river to the Zao interchange, downhill after the turn.

The organiser calls the climb the place to hold on. The riverbank has about 2.3 km of cherry trees, and October is the season when the banks fill with imoni stew parties. Past the Gokoku shrine fewer than 5 km remain, and the Futakuchi bridge crosses to the far bank before the finish at the Yamagata City Sports Center.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsThe 2026 half: 2 h 50 min, 6,000 places2026: 9:05 start, 2 h 50 min limit, 6,000 places, a new loop in Kajo Park.

The first start of the day, the 3 km, was at 8:15. The 2026 course changed because the park works closed the old straight route: it now loops inside Kajo Park past the Honmaru palace site, the Higashi-Otemon gate and the Mogami Yoshiaki statue, and a detour near Izumicho avoids closing a residential street.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

2 gels for Yamagata, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7.3mile 4.6
  2. km 14.7mile 9.1

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.

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
21.1 km13.1 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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