Running News Daily

Nagoya open again to runners worldwide

In 2023 women runners from around the world will once again have the chance to run in the world’s largest women’s marathon: Nagoya Women’s Marathon, Japan. This follows from the easing of Japanese Covid travel restrictions.

The Nagoya Women’s Marathon is pleased to announce the reopening of overseas entries for the 2023 event, scheduled for Sunday, March 12, 2023, in Nagoya, Japan. This is in response to the Japanese government’s decision to lift restrictions on new entries of international tourists as of today, October 11, 2022, after nearly 2.5 years of strict border control due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Specifically, the visa exemption arrangements, which had been suspended during the pandemic, are resumed, the ban on individual travel (without a travel agency) is lifted, and the daily arrival cap of 50,000 is removed. Although all travelers and returnees, regardless of nationality, will still be required to provide either a certificate of three doses of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative result of a pre-departure COVID-19 test, the country has become dramatically easier to visit for international tourists.

The race organizer welcomes this significant relaxation and hopes that in March next year, the women runners living abroad will be able to come to Japan and run Nagoya’s proud wide streets without worry. The race has been held even during the pandemic, in 2020, 2021, and 2022 without cancellation by scaling back and implementing various infection protection measures. Unfortunately, however, international non-elite runners could only participate in the virtual “Nagoya Women’s Online Marathon” due to the border restrictions on international tourists.

The organizer is delighted to encourage international runners who have wanted to participate in the event in Nagoya over the past three years but were unable to, and runners who have supported the event by running the online marathon instead, to take this opportunity to enter.

The Nagoya Women’s Marathon is a global festival for women runners, dedicated to welcoming all women who love running, from the world’s top female athletes to fun runners and first-time marathon challengers.

All finishers will receive an exclusively designed Tiffany & Co. pendant, handed one-by-one by a member of the Omotenashi (Hospitality) Squad dressed in tuxedos. An online marathon will also be held for those who prefer participating virtually. Applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis until Wednesday, November 30 at 23:59 Japan time, and the capacity for overseas runners is 3,500, including the in-person and virtual races.