It’s been a disappointing time for long-distance runners in Japan. First, the Covid-19 coronavirus forced the Tokyo Marathon to be restricted to elite runners. Then the Tokyo Olympics, including the marathon which was moved to Sapporo, were postponed to July 2021. The Nagoya City Marathon, a race with around 20,000 participants, was set to start on March 8, but instead of postponing or cancelling, the organisers came up with an ingenious solution.
To avoid people running in a big group and potentially spreading coronavirus, the Nagoya City Marathon and Nagoya Women's Marathon have both moved online. Registered runners can now download a smartphone app that tracks their running distance so they can participate from anywhere in the world, as long as they run the correct distance – think of it as social-distance running.
The Nagoya Women's Marathon is a full marathon of the standard 42.195km length, while the Nagoya City Marathon consists of a half marathon or a quarter marathon, depending on your registration. Runners can attempt the entire distance in one go, or split the run over two days. Participants without smartphones can also self report their statistics.
The Nagoya online marathons last from March 8 to May 31. After completing the course, runners will receive an online certificate.
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