Chongqing Marathon

The Chongqing Marathon is a World Athletics Gold Label road race held each January in Chongqing, China, and one of the founding events of the Chinese Marathon Majors circuit. Since its debut in 2011, the race has grown into western China's premier marathon, drawing around 35,000 runners across the full marathon (42.195 km) and a 5K mini run. Both distances start and finish at Haitang Misty Rain Park and follow Nanbin Road and Babin Road along the Yangtze and Jialing rivers, crossing six bridges over the two rivers -- a signature feature that has earned the event the nickname 'the race of six bridges.' The course also passes Chaotianmen Bridge and other riverside landmarks in Nan'an District. Chang'an Automobile has served as title sponsor since 2014, and the race is organized by the Chongqing Municipal Sports Bureau together with the Nan'an and Banan district governments, with technical certification from the Chinese Athletics Association. Entry is allocated mostly by lottery, since demand regularly exceeds 200,000 applications for around 25,000 marathon spots, and finishers are famously welcomed with a post-race hotpot, the city's signature dish. The Chongqing Marathon is a fast, flat riverside course popular with runners chasing a personal best inside a large, festival-atmosphere Chinese city race.