FUKUOKA MARATHON 2026

FUKUOKA MARATHON 2026 is a large point-to-point city marathon linking central Fukuoka with the coastal city of Itoshima on Sunday, 8 November 2026. The marathon field is capped at 13,000 runners, with roughly 15,000 participants across the wider programme when the official 5.2K fun run and wheelchair race are included. The 42.195K marathon follows a Japan Association of Athletics Federations certified course and is designed as a mass-participation race with a seven-hour event limit.

The course starts in Tenjin, Fukuoka's busy city centre, then moves west through a changing mix of urban landmarks and seaside scenery. Runners pass the Seaside Momochi area near Fukuoka Tower and Mizuho PayPay Dome, continue past the Ikinomatsubara and Nagatare coastline, and reach the Kyushu University Ito Campus around halfway. Later sections take runners towards fishing and coastal districts before the course reaches Futamigaura and finishes at Itoshima City Koryu Plaza Shima-kan. The organiser describes relatively few major undulations overall, although there is a notable late-race rise before the finish.

The marathon starts at 08:20 JST and uses nine published checkpoints before the 15:20 finish closure. First-aid stations are positioned at each checkpoint and at the finish. Entrants' baggage is transported from the start area to Itoshima in the organiser-supplied baggage bag. Organisers advise runners and spectators to use public transport, and shuttle transport operates around the finish area because there is no participant parking there.

Registration opened on 20 April and closed on 20 May 2026. The overseas priority allocation of 500 marathon places filled early, while the wider field used a lottery process. Runner check-in takes place at the Fukuoka Marathon EXPO beside Fukuoka City Hall on 6 and 7 November, with photo identification required and no proxy or race-day check-in.

The official programme also includes a 5.2K wheelchair race and 5.2K non-competitive fun run. ARC does not currently expose an exact 5.2K distance option, so those supporting races are noted here rather than being inaccurately mapped to 5K.