pacertrip.

PACERTRIP CITY EDITIONMY / RACE GUIDE

Elopura Marathon Sandakan

The city you want to run becomes your next trip.

Sandakan
MY

CEphoto, Uwe Aranas · CC BY-SA 4.0Wikimedia Commons · Steven Tung, CC BY-SA 3.0

Race date in 38 days: Nov 22, 2026 Sun
City · Distance: Sandakan · 42.195km · 21.1km
Entry fee: MYR 80From the 2025 edition
Status: OpenSee how to enter ↗

Official website ↗

Instagram

D-day as of Oct 15, 2026

About the race How to enter Course Race Prep Travel

Why you dream of this race

THE DREAM

ABOUT THE RACE

A day you'll remember,
long past the finish line.

Held every November in Sandakan, a city on the east coast of Malaysia's Sabah state,

this road race offers full marathon, half marathon and 10km events.

The 2026 race will be the fourth edition since the inaugural event in November 2023.

The name 'Elopura' means 'beautiful city' and was the former name given to Sandakan during the British North Borneo era.

It was briefly used again during the Japanese occupation in the Pacific War.

Sandakan is the name used today, but Elopura remains in administrative contexts such as local electoral districts.

The race uses the old name to highlight the city's history.

The road to your own record

Picture the course in advance
and find the pace that fits you.

When the city cheers

Streets lined with cheers, runners all around.
You'll be part of that scene.

The trip that follows the run

Take it slow with the finish still in you,
and meet the city all over again.

Stories from runners who've been there.

From the joy of finishing to the tough moments — read what runners wrote themselves.

No runner reports yet. We'll add them here as they come in.

See it on video,
feel it through their stories.

Preview the course and read what runners who went before you wrote.

Elopura Sandakan Marathon 2025

motopet Vlog

View on YouTube

This may be from a past edition. Check the organizer for this year's course and operations.

The way in that fits you

YOUR ENTRY

How to reach the start line —
start with what fits you.

Here are the ways to enter and what each requires.
Check the organizer's page for whether entries are open.

From the 2025 edition

We'll fill this in once the official entry rules are out.

Official race website Entry options

From the start line to the finish

RACE WEEK

Your 42.195km

Know the course and time limit, and race day comes into focus.

From the 2025 edition

Runners start · local timeFrom 00:30

Time limit7 hours

Full marathon 7 hours

Event	Start	Time limit
Marathon42.195km	00:30	7h
Half21.0975km	02:00	4h
10K10km	05:30	2h

START

Sandakan Sports Complex, Sandakan

Start · Google Maps

The start and finish are both at the Sandakan Sports Complex.

Course passes through central Sandakan and then heads out to the coast and green areas on the edge of the city,

combining the buzz of downtown with natural scenery.

Three events are held together, full marathon, half marathon and 10km, and all start and finish at the Sports Complex.

Sandakan is a port city on the east coast of Sabah, and course crosses low-lying bayside terrain in many places.

Organizer: Sandakan Orthopedic Association
Typical race-season temperature: around 27°C (81°F): Hot race — plan fluids and electrolytes

Participant benefits

Finisher medal

Event T-shirt

Finisher certificate

Finisher T-shirt

To the start line,
step by step.

Pick up your bib, check your wave.
So on race morning, you can just run.

From the 2025 edition

Pick up your bib at the expo

You can receive race packs only at designated times and locations.
11/20 (Fri)~11/21 (Sat) 10:00~17:00

Multipurpose Hall, Sandakan Sports Complex, Sandakan

Google Maps

Stations & transport near the venue

Getting to the startSandakan Sports Complex, 10 Jalan Sibuga, 90000 Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia
Transit cardUse the Grab app or agree on a taxi fare upfront before the ride — Sandakan has no formal card-based transit system, only cash-paid private minivans/buses and unmetered taxis.

Source · checked Aug 22, 2026 · Source · checked Aug 17, 2026

More details

Getting to the start

Sandakan Sports Complex, 10 Jalan Sibuga, 90000 Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia

No rail/metro system in Sandakan; nearest airport is Sandakan Airport (SDK), ~8 miles/~13min drive. Grab rideshare from airport to town runs roughly RM25-40 (as low as RM13-15/~25min to Harbour Mall area per one source).

Map

Start shuttle

Prior (2025) edition flag-off times were 2am (full marathon), 4am (half marathon), 6am (10km) — if similar for 2026, foreign runners will need very early transport (Grab/pre-arranged taxi) since public transit does not exist and taxi availability may be limited at those hours.

Transit card

Local minivans ('vans') run fixed routes roughly 6/7am-6/7pm with cash fares of RM2-5 paid directly to the driver/conductor. Taxis are rarely metered, fares negotiated beforehand (short in-city rides ~RM10-25).

Grab operates in Sandakan and is the most predictable option. No hop-on-hop-off or tourist transit pass exists within Sandakan city itself.

Where to buy

Source · checked Aug 22, 2026 Source · checked Aug 17, 2026

READY TO RUN

From race morning to after the finish.

Your start time, fuel and bag drop.
Know them ahead and the run feels easier.

November is the rainy season in Sandakan.

The city has a tropical rainforest climate with little temperature variation throughout the year: daytime temperatures reach around 32°C and remain about 27°C at night.

Rainfall is heaviest from October to February;

average November rainfall exceeds 300mm, with rain recorded on more than half the days of the month.

Humidity can reach the high 80s, making the heat feel oppressive.

Course is relatively flat, passing through urban areas and low-lying coastal terrain without mountain sections,

but heat and humidity are major demands on runners.

Sandakan is one of Sabah’s cut-off point cities, with domestic flights from places such as Kota Kinabalu,

and it also provides access to nearby attractions including the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre.

Times are local to Sandakan. Check the latest official information before the race.

A trip built around the race

STAY A LITTLE

MAKE IT A RUNTRIP

The race is one day,
the trip can be longer.

From a hotel that makes race morning easy,
to the meals and views you'll enjoy with the medal on.

Sandakan Ijm pool view condo

Accommodation · 1.5km

9.3/10(46)

View on Booking.com

4D3N Sepilok Wildlife Tour with Kinabatangan River Cruise Experience in Sandakan

₩729,794

View on Klook

Sandakan Mangrove Fireflies Dinners Tastings Cruise

₩103,739

Elopura Marathon Sandakan

About Elopura Marathon Sandakan — what makes it special

A day you'll remember,long past the finish line.

The road to your own record

When the city cheers

The trip that follows the run