SoCal Runners Traveling to Run

Four runners out of seven runners that I have contacted so far for this project were not in town this weekend. That was all for the same reason. They all flew to Japan to participate in the Tokyo Marathon 2012, the largest marathon in my home country Japan, which was held on Feb. 26. The four participants included one Japanese, one Korean and two Americans all living in Southern California.

There are tons of marathons and running events in California, but why would they go all the way to Japan just to run? 

“When you run in California, unfortunately the view does not change much within the 26.2 miles” said Emily Jo, a 21-year-old college student wearing a “Hong Kong Marathon Finisher” T-shirt. She said she enjoys going abroad to participate in marathons in small countries because the scenery changes and never gets her bored during the race.


In fact, the course of the Tokyo Marathon symbolizes the past, present and the future of Tokyo. During the unforgettable 26.2 mile journey, the runners had the chance to thoroughly enjoy numerous famous sightseeing spots, such as the Imperial Palace, Tokyo Tower and the world’s largest fish market, and reached their goal at Tokyo Big Sight Convention Center.

Some runner’s purpose is traveling, like Andrea Wood, 28, an office worker who began running five years ago and competed three marathons around the world. “I always wanted to visit Japan and I thought this marathon would be a good opportunity to make it happen. I also ran the Amsterdam Marathon because I wanted to travel to Holland. ” She started running to get fit and add some spice to her travel experiences. 

Zack Dixon, 36, was participating for the “International Friendship Run” and the charity “Tsunagu.”  The Tokyo Marathon this year was held as a major fundraising event for those affected by the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami. Zack said “I wanted to do something for Japan after the tsunami, and I thought I could contribute by running, which is the one thing I am good at.” “Many people came to cheer,” he said, “and it was awesome running in the middle of the capital.”

Another participant, Chihiro Tamada, 32, a Japanese woman runner’s motivation was different. “I always wanted to run the Tokyo Marathon, but when I was living in Japan, I couldn’t get selected. But now I live in the states and it is much easier to be accepted to participate.” The marathon tends to be 10 times over subscribed.

More than 35,000 runners took part in the Tokyo Marathon 2012, with around 10% of those being international. 

It seems that each runner have their own good reason to travel all the way to run in foreign countries from sunny California.