Borneo Bird Run 2026

Borneo Bird Run 2026 returns to Sepilok on Sunday, 8 November as the fourth edition of a nature-focused running event linked to the Borneo Bird Festival. After several years away, the run is back alongside the 16th festival at Rainforest Discovery Centre, bringing runners into one of Sandakan's best-known rainforest and birding settings rather than a conventional city-road race.

The 12K Adventure Run starts and finishes at the Rainforest Discovery Centre car park. The published route follows the Sepilok area via Jalan Sepilok and Jalan Cheng Ho and circles the RDC Lake before returning to the event hub. The first flag-off is at 07:00 MYT. Men's and women's Open divisions are for runners aged 44 and below, while men's and women's Veteran divisions are for runners aged 45 and above. The minimum age is 13, and participants under 18 require parental or guardian consent.

A 2K Fancy Dress Run follows at 07:15 MYT for children and families. Participants can run in creative costumes, and children aged 12 and below must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. This shorter event is designed as a family-friendly complement to the longer Adventure Run.

The race is organised by Sandakan Borneo Bird Club in conjunction with the Borneo Bird Festival, with the wider festival supported by conservation and tourism partners in Sabah. After finishing, participants are in the same Rainforest Discovery Centre precinct as the festival programme, making the event particularly suitable for runners combining the race with a Sepilok nature visit.

Registration closed on 30 September 2026. Race-pack collection is scheduled for 5 to 7 November, daily from 09:30 to 17:00 MYT at San Da Gen Kopitiam in Sandakan town. The organiser has not published a detailed elevation profile, aid-station plan, formal cut-off times or a fixed cash-prize schedule in the accessible current-edition information, so runners should follow the organiser's final race-week instructions for any operational updates.