A quarter of the 74,000 runners in this Sunday’s Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2026 are nonlocal entrants from 110 countries and regions, which underscores the race’s status as a “high-standard major event” with “great global appeal”, its organizers said on Monday.
At a news conference on Monday afternoon, Kwan Kee, who chairs both the Hong Kong, China Association of Athletics Affiliates and the marathon’s organizing committee, said that 25 percent of this year’s competitors are nonlocal participants from 110 countries and regions around the world.
“The marathon is a high-standard major event that enjoys great global appeal,” Kwan said. “It occupies a paramount place on the global long-distance running calendar, and many runners worldwide are eager to come to Hong Kong to partake in it.”
Kwan added that this year, the race will also be joined by 40 world-class “gold label” elite marathoners, whose profiles are set for release at a news conference on Friday.
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Earlier the day, the premier road race has been awarded the “M” Mark statue — an official recognition system to highlight sports events with global influences — by the city’s Major Sports Events Committee (MSEC) for its role in propping up the city’s profile as a sports capital and churning out considerable socioeconomic gains.
In a written statement, MSEC Chairman Wilfred Ng Sau-kei said the marathon “stands out as one of the city’s most popular running events”, which has also kept attracting elite and amateur runners worldwide to compete against while relishing Hong Kong’s unique cityscape.
This year’s marathon lineup will include a 42.195-kilometer full marathon, half-marathon, 10-kilometer race, and 10km wheelchair races.
The centerpiece, the full marathon, will retain its familiar course from Tsim Sha Tsui’s Nathan Road, traversing large swaths of Stonecutter Island, Tsing Yi, Lai King, and Mei Foo Sun Chuen before crossing Victoria Harbour through the Western Harbour Crossing. Runners will then race along the Connaught Road West, Lung Wo Road, Hung Hing Road and Hennessey Road to reach Victoria Park in Causeway Bay, which will serve as a shared finish line for all runs.
The half-marathon will start in Tsim Sha Tsui, the 10km race on the Island Eastern Corridor, and the wheelchair event at Wan Chai Sports Ground.
New for this year is a 2-km young run for 10- to 15-year-olds, slated for Saturday at Kai Tak Sports Park, and an expo will run from Wednesday to Saturday inside Kai Tak Arena in the lead-up to the race weekends.
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Also on Monday, the Hong Kong Police Force and the Transport Department announced that a phased road closure will take effect from 11:30 pm on Saturday on several major arteries across Hong Kong Island, New Territories South, and Kowloon West to ensure the marathon’s smooth holding.
Affected routes will begin reopening as the event concludes from around 10:30 am on Sunday, with all closures expected to be lifted by around 2 pm.
Traffic in affected areas on the race day will be much heavier than on a usual weekend, the Transport Department cautioned, urging motorists to follow traffic alerts, steer clear of the zones, while the public is advised to plan early and prioritize rail travel.
To accommodate runners, MTR Corp will run early first trains on eight lines on Sunday. Meanwhile, 28 special bus routes will also operate on Sunday, as 220 regular daytime bus routes and 34 daytime minibus routes will be suspended, shortened, or rerouted in phases.
Contact the writer at wanqing@chinadailyhk.com
