pacertrip.

PACERTRIP CITY EDITIONCN / RACE GUIDE

2026 Gaochun Marathon

The city you want to run becomes your next trip.

Nanjing
CN

ScareCriterion12 · CC0西安兵马俑, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons西安兵马俑, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Race date in 29 days: Nov 8, 2026 Sun
City · Distance: Nanjing · 42.195km
Entry fee: CN¥130Varies by event and entry period
Status: ClosedWed, September 9, 2026 ~ Mon, September 21, 2026See how to enter ↗

Official website ↗D-day as of Oct 10, 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.

The race is scheduled to take place on November 8, 2026, in Gaochun, Jiangsu Province.

It is a World Athletics Label event.

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.

Course preview

yang liu (run to travel) · Course preview

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.

Registration history

The 2026 race opened entry on Wed, September 9, 2026

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

City center · not the start line

We have not confirmed the start line coordinates yet. The map shows the host city.

START

南京市

Start line stands on the southern shore road of Gucheng Lake.

Full marathon forms a large loop along the road around the lake, crossing Gucheng Lake Bridge twice: once early in the race,

and once at the point where runners return after the out-and-back section on the northern side of the lake.

Course stays mostly along the lakeshore, with the water beside runners throughout the 42.195 km course.

Half marathon starts from the same start line, crosses the bridge once, and then finishes.

The organizers describe course as linking Baosheng Temple Pagoda, Gaochun Old Street, and Gucheng Lake.

The race name includes “International Cittaslow,” referring to the fact that Yaxi in Gaochun belongs to the International Cittaslow Network.

Typical race-season temperature: around 11°C (52°F): Short sleeves or light long sleeves + arm warmers

Participant benefits

Not yet confirmed in the official race guide

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

Based on the 2025 edition — you must collect your items in person at the advance pickup location with valid personal ID; proxy pickup is not allowed.
The pickup event was held alongside a crab-themed market.
The 2026 pickup location and date will be announced through official channels closer to race day.

Stations & transport near the venue

Getting to the start高淳站 (Gaochun Station, Nanjing Metro S9
Getting to the finish高淳站 (Gaochun Station, Metro S9)

Source · checked Aug 22, 2026

More details

Getting to the start

高淳站 (Gaochun Station, Nanjing Metro S9 / Ninggao Line)

Start/finish on 丹阳湖南路 (Danyanghu South Road), Gaochun District, Nanjing. Metro S9 runs from Nanjing South Station area through Jiangning/Lishui to its southern terminus at Gaochun Station; walk/short taxi from station to start area.

Per prior edition (2025) pattern.

Map

Getting to the finish

高淳站 (Gaochun Station, Metro S9)

Course loops around Gucheng Lake back to same start/finish area near 丹阳湖南路.

Map

Source · checked Aug 22, 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.

The race is held every autumn.

The 2025 edition started at 7:30 a.m. on November 2, well outside Nanjing's plum-rain season,

which runs from mid-June to late July, and its intensely hot summer.

Nanjing's average temperature is 3.1 degrees in January and 28.4 degrees in July, making it one of China's notably hot summer cities.

The finisher gift is crab.

Gucheng Lake is known for its freshwater crabs, and the organisers prepared 17,000 crabs as race gifts,

giving each full marathon finisher one male and one female crab.

The finisher finisher medal is also crab-themed,

and the race is known by the nickname 'the sideways-walking marathon', a reference to the crab's sideways movement.

The race holds China Athletics Association Gold Medal status and is regarded as one of Jiangsu's top 10 beautiful running course.

The combined capacity for the marathon, half marathon and mini run is approximately 15,000 runners.

Founded in 2015, the event reached its eighth edition in 2025.

Course follows the shoreline of Gucheng Lake and crosses two bridges, allowing runners to see the same terrain twice from different angles.

Times are local to Nanjing. 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.

Atour Hotel Wangfujing Ave Xinjiekou Nanjing

Hotel · 841m

9.7/10(13)

View on Booking.com

Tangshan No 1 Hot Spring Resort

₩29,939

2026 Gaochun Marathon

About 2026 Gaochun Marathon — 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