Bando Masakado Marathon

The Bando Masakado Half Marathon is a long-running road race held each November in Bando, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, roughly 50 km northeast of central Tokyo. Named after the famous 10th-century samurai Taira no Masakado, who is closely associated with the region, the event combines competitive road racing with the history and local culture of Bando.

The headline half marathon is run on a Japan Association of Athletics Federations (JAAF)-certified course through Bando’s Iwai district. It is notably flat, with a maximum elevation difference of only about 10 metres, making it a potentially fast course for runners chasing a personal best. The race starts on the road east of the Bando City Iwai Community Center (Iwai Kominkan) and finishes on the track at Yasaka General Park Athletics Stadium. The half marathon has a 2-hour 30-minute time limit, including a checkpoint at approximately 15.7 km that runners must reach within 2 hours 10 minutes of the start.