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Shanghai International Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Shanghai International Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.0 
Organization 3.5 
Spectators 3.8
Number of comments: 29 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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B. P. from Shanghai, China
(12/5/2011)
 "Can you hear me now? Not a destination marathon!" (about: 2011)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Shanghai International Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 As an Ex-Pat living in Shanghai, I obviously find this city comfortable enough to call home. However even as a race that starts 10 minutes from my front door, it is not one that I would likely do again. The organization was not great. Maybe I am spoiled having ran so many times in the United States where even the smaller races have been well organized but this was terrible especially at the start. First they have one starting line, with two corrals. One is for a 'fun race' which is like a 5K the other is for the half and full. Due to adequate signs I saw so many other people who came in town for the half or full in the 'fun race' corral. That corral took a hard right (with barricades) from the starting line and made them unable to right their wrong and jump to the correct course. I was almost one of them. Another HUGE problem is that there was no separation for seasoned runners thus unless you showed up two hours before the race you were back in the pack running behind tons of local chinese 26,000 runners total this year I was told, although I started probably only behind 1,500 of them. I'm sorry, but if I were coming in town I would be very upset to have to worry for the first 15k about maybe having someone just stop running right in front of me. Stop running right in front of you? Yes. It happened all the time and I only started 1,500 people back. This race (as all races) needs to explicitly ban cell phones and cameras. As someone who has worked out here I can tell you that Chinese and their current culture is literally inseparable from their cell phones. (Forget getting emails from this race to confirm, its only via text and the texts come race day starting at 3am!) On the course I ran into 2 people that slowed to answer their phone, saw at least 5 texting (OMG IM RUNNING GUYS LOL), saw no less than 10 people stop mid course to take a picture of the view or themselves. I also saw my very first fist fight at the 20km mark with two older Chinese men right in front of me. Because there is no separation at the beginning by proof of a qualifying time or any other method, the amount of runners you literally bump into doing these things is unbelievable. I am not an elite, and was doing it for fun at around a 1:30 pace, but with the dodging of people who could not separate from their technology for two hours and started at the front made it much less enjoyable than it should have been. Also, be warned if there is a television camera at the part of the course for people will literally run across right in front of you to stop and yell into the camera. Also the aid stations were very inadequate. They said there was water at every 2km but they considered water wet sponges at half of them. If I live in a city where I am told not to drink the water from the tap Im not going to ring a sponge for it, if thats what they were thinking I'd do. | |
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Go Wazzu from Pullman, WA
(12/10/2010)
 "Awesome but with small logistical problems!" (about: 2010)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 This was my first Shanghai Marathon, so don't know the old course, but the new course was pretty good. It took you past a lot of the scenic parts of the world's largest city, around the Bund; but then, at the 20K-mark, sent you on a straight, out-and-back shot, which was not so scenic. I suppose that allows for the marathon to happen, as again, shutting down the world's largest city I think would be a challenge. Great course control and cheering along the way; no complaints on organization except at the start. People need to remember that this is mainland China, so things are still a little different (runners smoking in the starting corrals, etc., but hey, no big deal - I think it's awesome!). But the only downside was the bottleneck at the start where they had officials on the course directing traffic over the recessed brass traffic columns, making the entire race come to a dead stop for 30 seconds or so with a lot of pushing. That seemed like a major problem at the time, but it was a minor thing overall. I still had a great race; check it out! :) | |
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R. S. from London, England
(2/11/2010)
 "Could do better and a painful memory" (about: 2009)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Shanghai International Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Pre-race was good but the finish was pretty chaotic and a nightmare to get away from. As for the run, the start is fun, but after the first few kilometers it was a shame to find we were up close with a traffic jam. My biggest gripe comes from the fact that the locals didn't seem to know there was a race and the stewarding of the course was poor. Motorbikes and even cars repeatedly tried to cross the course. I ended up colliding with a bike and my thumb was a painful memory for a long time. It's always fun to spend a weekend in Shanghai, especially with friends, but I wouldn't go again just for the race. | |
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S. S. from Bkk, Thailand
(12/19/2009)
 "OK, but needs to improve in some respects." (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Shanghai International Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I've run about 20 marathons. The overall competition was OK, but it needs to improve in some ways. 1.The race course was quite boring. No memorable places (such as the Bund). And the ground was so hard too (after 25 KM). 2. There were few English signs, so you didn't understand where to return your chip or where to get your running certificate from (if you can't read Chinese). 3. The website is ugly (especially the running results). 4. Starting line was so great, but the finishing line was so small (like other small marathon that have 500-2,000 runners). | |
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H. S. from shanghai
(12/10/2009)
"not really worth it" (about: 2009)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Shanghai International Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 A rather boring and ugly marathon, taking you past absolutely none of the sights or interesting places in town but rather along straight main roads and industrial parks. Organization is ok, but in the earlier part the road is too narrow for the number of runners. Very good finish line logistics though - even though I did not see any showers provided. (But note that the finish is way out of the center.) So if you are in Shanghai, it's a can-do; but do not bother going there for the run. | |
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Andrew Stokes-Rees from Edinburgh, Scotland
(12/9/2008)
 "Memorable marathon experience" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Shanghai International Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The 2008 Shanghai marathon is an event with many characteristics you would expect from a first-rate international marathon. And yes there are some aspects that could be improved. To begin, Shanghai is a massive, modern city that makes London and even New York seem civilized and quaint. The course accordingly begins in a super-modern "Times-Square" kind of atmosphere with tens of thousands of runners and spectators packing into the start area. Although there were plenty of foreign runners, this event is massively dominated by young Chinese. Just enough English signage allowed newcomers like me could to make sense of staging pens, shuttle buses etc. The flat, fast course winds through the downtown area, eventually leaving the busy center for the outskirts of town. The density of runners, the hype and the presence of marshals and cheerers faded after the fork of the popular half-marathon course. The day began clear and at a nice 12 degrees Celsius, gradually warming up to 18. Disappointingly, the course did not go through the famous Bund area, nor Pudong or the historic old city. Nonetheless, the sight of temples, monuments and thousands of cheerers created a memorable course atmosphere. I found myself continuously entertained by the costumes, props and choreographed movements of women's groups cheering and dancing in unison along the roadside. Little in the way of snacks on course, but regular drink stations offered sponges and sport drinks with the curious label: Porcari-Sweat. Having already seen the slick registration set-up, I was not surprised to find that the finish area system was equally methodical. By the time I left the stadium I was heavily laden with food, gifts and prizes. Runners often comment on the material value of a marathon, which in this case was excellent: I received a technical running shirt, a cordura Mizuno back pack, plenty of food (including a bottle of soy sauce??), a medal, certificate, a plush towel, a book about shanghai, and oh yes, a box of Twinkies and two more bottles of Porc Sweat. | |
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J. W. from Shanghai, China
(12/5/2008)
"OK, all in all" (about: 2008)
4-5 previous marathons
| 2 Shanghai International Marathons
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 It was a perfect day, weather-wise: cool, sunny, windless. But the air, as usual, was horrendous. Absolutely choking at some places, where you run beside endless lines of idling vehicles, where the air is trapped and has nowhere to go but your lungs (you run under elevated highways for a couple K in the 1st half, then on an elevated, beside the noise barrier, for a few K in the 2nd half). Awful for an asthmatic like me. It was the same last year. Considering the city, an incredibly ill-planned route. Nowhere near the Bund, the French Concession, etc. In fact, at the end when you're struggling, it's into industrial waste land. (A marathon into China's 21st century??) Ridiculous registration process: cannot register online. Overall organization: pretty standard, I guess. Buses to carry items from start to finish, fairly well-organized (could be better). Fluid, sponge, toilet and aid stations well-spaced and signed. No impediments from traffic (except the fumes). Shuttle buses from the finish back into the city (but then, why not finish somewhere central?). Spectators: lots of organized groups banging gongs and shouting, "Jia you" (go, go). Good crowds. Overall: If you are in China, and don't have many options, come. Otherwise, don't go out of your way for this one. | |
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J. C. from Shanghai, China
(12/4/2008)
"Shanghai not at its best" (about: 2008)
3 previous marathons
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Only run the Shanghai Marathon if you want to have a race in China in your pocket. The route is far from exciting, as it goes through the outskirts of the city! What a shame - there are so many other nice routes in the city! | |
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R. T. from Bahrain
(12/3/2008)
"Awesome atmosphere!" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Shanghai International Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 This is my first ever "big" event, and the sheer number of participants was overwhelming and made for an amazing atmosphere. The route itself was not that great, but it wasn't so bad either, compared to some of the routes Ive raced. The spectators made the event so much more fun, and practically the whole way were people cheering, "Ja yai, ja yai," and ladies dancing in formation with ribbons and drums and tambourines. The organization at the end was excellent; we queued up for certificates immediately after finishing and received medals at the same time. The weather was just perfect. My friends and I WILL be back next year. The website is a little difficult to understand (the English version). Has anyone managed to view the results yet? | |
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R. P. from Shanghai, China
(12/1/2008)
"Not scenic, but nice crowds and decently organized" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Shanghai International Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Overall, this was a pretty good race (I ran the 1/2, and my wife ran the full). It was well organized from number pickup through the awards, and the course was well marked, with frequent water and sponge stations (I saw them at a minimum every 5K; not sure what experience the previous poster had). The crowds were enthusiastic, with lots of groups of supporters on the sidelines chanting or cheering. The Puxi area of Shanghai is not the most scenic area, and we were running on roads with active traffic, although there was plenty of space between runners and autos, unlike previous years. My recommendation on the survey they sent out was to pick a more scenic environment, but it's tough in this city. The website was awful, especially the bit in English - we're still waiting for results to be posted a few days later. |
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