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Apr 25, 2024

Marathon Details - Xiamen International Marathon

International Marathons > China > Xiamen > Xiamen International Marathon

C & D Xiamen International Marathon

Xiamen, China

January 7, 2024

http://www.xmim.org

More Info:	News
Results:	Top 3 Finishers by Year

Contact

Name:
Address:	General Office of Xiamen International Marathon 2 Tiyu Lu, Xiamen 361012 China
Phone Number:	+86-592-5148126
Fax Number:	+86-592-5121241
Email:



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Reviews

Course 4.6

Organization 3.6

Spectators 4.4

Number of comments: 5

J. C. from Singapore (1/25/2016) "5/10 for IAAF Gold Label Race" (about: 2016) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Xiamen International Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 This was my first marathon in China. Prior to that, I had ran in Australia, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Taiwan and Singapore. Registration. Online registration opened about 2 months prior to the race date. Registration on the English version of the website was easy and fast, and confirmation was immediate without any balloting. There was however no email acknowledgement of the registration and payment. The only confirmation was via the website where, on logging in with a user name and a password, confirmed that I had completed the registration, paid for the race and been assigned a bib number. Pre-Race Information. The English version of the website did not contain information such as race collection pack, race day schedule, race day transport etc. The message was Updating soon & Such information was contained in only the Chinese website. Of particular use were the information on race pack collection, free shuttle bus transport on race day (with detailed routes and timings of all buses), starting point layout and finishing point layout. Race Pack Collection. Collection was at the Sports Centre at Tiyu Road where I went on the eve of the race day. I had to produce only my passport, which the staff then checked against computer records, and I was then issued with a slip of paper to collect the race pack at a separate counter. At the collection counter, the staff called out the runners names, and you would then exchange the slip for the race pack. The staff could only converse and read Chinese only. Direction signs were in Chinese only. There were booths selling race-related merchandise e.g. energy gels, clothing. Overall, the collection process was a tad crowded and confusing. Asking for directions was a must. Race Pack. The pack contained 2 pieces of race bib, a smaller piece of the race number (to be attached to the bag for depositing on race day), safety pins, time chip, a visor and an A4-size race manual (in Chinese and English). The manual contained useful information such as the course route, the starting point layout and the ending point layout. An unusual instruction was that runners were required to wear two number bibs one in front and one at the back. Getting to Starting Point. My hotel was between 2 points where supposedly I could board free shuttle bus to get to Xiamen International Conference and Exhibition Centre, the starting point. It was however not clear exactly where the pick-up points were. Not wanting to risk it, I instead took a taxi for about RMB30 which dropped me off about 100 metres from the starting point. Those who took the free shuttle buses were dropped quite a distance away and had to walk about a km or more to the starting point. Bag Deposit. The booths for the bag deposits were arranged according to bib numbers. For example, my bib started with number 5 and so I had to drop my bag at the 5& booth. Starting Pen. The starting pen was divided into various sectors, again based on the first number of the bib. The entrance to each sector was manned and our bib numbers were checked. I saw at least 50 porta-loos. Even at that number, the queues built up rapidly. Amazingly, a few runners, at the sides of the starting pen, smoked openly and oblivious to the smoke they blew to other runners. The starting pen was noisy, crowded, shoulder-to-shoulder, and had hardly any room to do any last-minute stretching. Selfies, welfies and talking into the phones were the norm. For the 30 to 45 minutes or so when I was stuck in the pen waiting for the start, it was not a pleasant experience. If you didn't get into the starting pen early, it would have been very difficult to do so closer to the start. I would estimate that at least 85 to 90% of the runners were locals. The foreigners were mainly from Taiwan with whom, I believe, there was cross-marketing for a Taiwanese marathon (Kinmen Marathon). Running Experience. The route generally hugged the coast and headed south before making a U-turn near the 17 km mark and made its way north. At about 35 km, we passed the exhibition centre which had been the starting point. After that, it was all the way north to the finishing point at the lighthouse. Weather was generally cool between 15 to 20 degrees. We ran on roads with tarmac surface. The route was not flat and there were sections with significant elevations. Hydration stations were generally crowded but adequate. Some stations also offered wet sponges and cut bananas. There was no practice of slower runners keeping to the side. As a result, I encountered walkers and slow runners even smacked in the middle of the running path. What was most unpleasant was the prevalent practice of runners clearing their throats and indiscriminately spitting during the run. There was quite good spectator support throughout, much of which was genuinely heartfelt and spontaneous. Post-Race. On finishing the race, I was given a green slip of paper which I then exchanged for a finishers bag at a separate location. The bag contained the finishers medal, a big towel, a bottle of energy drink and some snacks. Retrieval of my personal bag from the bag deposit was a further walk away. Once there, the retrieval was fast. The general area, however, was generally muddy and messy. As for the shuttle buses, they were another 5 minutes away. There were no clear indications on the pick-up points. As a result, there was much random chasing and jostling for the buses. The way out was jammed. I did not see any viable transport out of the finishing point except for the shuttle buses. Conclusion. Overall, not a pleasant running experience, due mainly to the crowd. For a IAAF Gold Label race, I think it deserved only 5/10.
W. W. from Los Angeles (1/22/2016) "Beautiful course, poorly organized race" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Xiamen International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 PROs: Xiamen Marathon is one of the best Chinese Marathon races. The course has a beautiful scenery, almost along the coast line of the Xiamen Island at all the time. the temperature in Xiamen during the winter time is mild. the air is quite clean, as it is a non-industrial coast line island city. With $40K USD for the first place price (for male and for female), it attacks some world second tier runners to run the event. As a foreigner, you can register the event easily after the registration started. The $50USD is fairly cheap. The bag check, the potties at the start line are quite convenient. After you have finished, you will receive one bag with all stuff included, which include the finish medal was excellent. It made the exit very smooth and quick. The security at the end was tight. It made the exit easy. There were plenty of bag check tents with well marked numbers after the finish line. The bag claim was smooth. There were plenty of bus shuttle bus to send the runners and their family members to the center of the transportation. CONs: The course has plenty of hills, which makes it impossible to run your PB. There were 30k runners registered to the race. There were 20k runners finished the race before the 6 hours cut off time. There are plenty of water stations, about 2.5km each after 5km from the start line. There are plenty of water and drink supply in each station. You can see the spectators along the way almost all the way from start to the end. Most of the organization and service jobs are done by volunteers. No organizer showed up in the trade show; no information both, or desk, or person. The race guide provide no information about the race start time. No one in the trade show can provide an accurate information about the race. The start time info is not available form the web either. Go figure yourself for many things: The route profile in the race guide is wrong. There is no information / guide for early morning commute to the start line. After your application to the registration has accepted, without a Chinese bank account credit card, I found that the fee payment was impossible. I have to ask my friend to pay it for me. There was a government official show before the race. A lengthy talk before the race. A long list of introduction to different officials. The start line was the worst organized I have seen. It was dangerous. One shot for the 30k runners at the same time. Although they suggest to line up by numbers. There was no guiders, no enforcement, no dividings. You have to walk quite a long distance before you can actual have a slow run. People were pushing each other, step on each other's foot. Later, I found the good reason for that: the cutoff time is countered from the gun time. All scores are recorded from the gun time. What a mess. Except one or two organized drum beaten cheer groups, almost all the spectators uses 'JiaYou' to cheer the runners. The only signs you can see on the roads are hang by organizers on the light poles along the way. There was no individually made signs. Although there were many spectators, it is rather a boring crowd, in comparing with the bands, music, singers, fun signs in almost every race in the U.S. It took a week before you can see your time from the event web. The score is not to public. You have to input your ID number and bib number to see your score. It makes people wonder that why it took that long and why they hide all the scores, especially Xiamen Marathon had some bad publicity about their cheating scores / timing in the past.
D. C. from Shanghai, China (1/18/2016) "Beautiful but badly communicated" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Xiamen International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 Will be going back for the course and spectators, not for the race organization, website, fun runners. Positives: Scenic, even majestic, course that's easy to make into a holiday from China's grey cities. Reminded me of Big Sur at certain moments. Lots of bathroom access at the start. Bag drop off was right in the runners' corral making for stress-free access. Only wished the website clearly communicated this. Lots of cheering university students. Poor experiences: Website had no useful information. No start time, no pick up location. Even local friends navigating the Chinese website had a hard time. How could this be an 'international' marathon? Joined the corral where my number designated me to and was shocked to be stuck running with pace bunnies 75min off my time. Ran the first 13km at +50sec/km along a largely two-lane course. Drink stations are confusingly organized. Sports drinks, water are in different places every time with no clear labeling. China's running community still has a long way to go. Lots of casual runners who stop suddenly in front of the station or to take pictures. Lots of garbage shed in the middle of the at the start. Suggestions to organizer: 1) Make a better website: Common to all Chinese races, but I struggled to even find the start time of the race and package pickup location. 2) Close registration and inform lottery winners earlier: Few who find out they're going to run it a month before are actually serious runners planning to PR. 3) Divide the runners' corral more finely 4) End the course along the amusement park beach area and have a beach party: Would make for a unique, memorable and talked about race.
P. H. from Hong Kong (8/28/2013) "Great course" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Xiamen International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Xiamen is a beautiful Chinese coastal city in Fujian Province. Looking at the city alone is already worth the trip, but combining it with a marathon was a real treat. Although the amount of people that register and start running the marathon is quite overwhelming (in 2013 the official record was at 73,000) the course and the cheering masses along the road make fully up for it. Things that I would improve are the provision of water and food. After 20km some of the water stations ran out of water and there was definitely no food left after 25km. But luckily a lot of friendly bystanders handed out fruit. I stayed on a bit longer and spent a couple of days on the historic Gulangyu Island. If you can spare some extra days I can highly recommend to spend a night or two there.
S. L. from Hong Kong (1/7/2009) "A flat, fast course with lots of spectators" (about: 2008) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Xiamen International Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Xiamen is lovely seaside town, with good air quality and scenery along the course. The officials are determined to promote the Xiamen Marathon as the second biggest marathon in China, after Beijing. So they moved the event from the end of March to the first Saturday of January every year, where the weather is cool and better for marathon running. Highly recommended.

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