Sapporo Set To Host 2020 Olympic Marathon

17 October, 2019 Evan Johnson

Huge news from the International Olympic Committee yesterday with the announcement that the 2020 Olympic Marathon will take place in Sapporo instead of Tokyo.

Concerns over the intense heat in Tokyo during the month of August have led Olympic organisers to relocate the marathon and long-distance walking events to the cooler climate of Hokkaido. 

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Eliud Kipchoge, Rio 2016 Olympic Men's Marathon Gold Medallist. Photo: Getty Images 

The decision, made with the welfare of athletes in mind, gives the  thousands of international tourists coming to Japan for the Games even more reason to visit Hokkaido during their stay. 

The Women's Marathon is scheduled for August 2nd 2020. The Men's Marathon is scheduled for August 9th 2020.

Sapporo is a beautiful less-than-two-hour drive from Niseko and companies such as SkyExpress offer both transfers to and from as well as day tours in comfortable vehicles with private drivers. 

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Niseko has a rich community of trail and ultra-marathon runners, proven by the success of running icon Scott Jurek's recent visit. 

Evan Johnson
Evan Johnson

Evan came to Niseko for a ski season in 2015/16 and worked for Niseko Central as a Guest Host. One season wasn't enough though, and now he's back to stay year round! The snowboarding, dining and golfing were simply too good for him to want to live anywhere else...