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[ Wire ] · Dispatch · Jul 29

Tokyo Marathon Weather: What March Really Delivers

Tokyo Marathon race mornings have started between 7 and 14 degrees Celsius across the last four editions, with afternoon highs from 13 to past 20. The 2026 race started near 7 degrees and climbed toward 17, warm enough for organizers to issue an official heat advisory. The 2027 edition runs on March 7, a week later in the calendar than recent years.

What is the weather like at the Tokyo Marathon?

Edition by edition, from race-day reports:

  • 2023: 9 degrees at the gun, light breeze, high of 13, a textbook crisp Tokyo morning
  • 2024: 8 degrees at the start, dry and stable, low of 2 and high of 13
  • 2025: sunny start near 14 degrees, climbing past 20 by the finish, stronger sun than forecast
  • 2026: partly cloudy, low near 7 climbing toward 17, official heat advisory issued

The cold, still Tokyo morning is real, but it is not guaranteed. Two of the last three editions ran warmer than the race's reputation suggests.

Is Tokyo a cold-weather marathon?

It is the coldest Major on average, and it is the reason the course produces fast times. But the spread matters more than the average when planning kit. A 2 degree low in 2024 and a 20-plus degree finish in 2025 are two completely different races, and both happened within twelve months of each other on the same course.

What should I wear?

The gap between the start line and the gun is the problem, not the race. Tokyo's marathon starts at 9:10 a.m. and runners are in start blocks well before that, standing still in Shinjuku in early-morning air that has recently been as low as 2 degrees. Throwaway layers matter more here than at any other Major, and baggage check is an optional JPY 1,200 add-on rather than an included service.

Does the heat affect finishing times?

At the front, barely. Brigid Kosgei ran a 2:14:29 course record in the 2026 heat advisory edition, and Tadese Takele defended his title in 2:03:37 the same morning. Further back, a 17 degree afternoon with a 7 hour course limit is a different proposition for a six-hour finisher than for a three-hour one. The 2026 ballot results page carries that edition's conditions and field data, and the heat pace calculator adjusts a goal pace for temperature.

Is March 7 warmer than late February?

The 2027 race sits later in the calendar than several recent editions, which ran in late February and the first days of March. The historical record here is short and the year-to-year swing is wider than the seasonal drift, so the honest answer is to plan for the full 2 to 20 degree range rather than to bet on a date. Conditions for every past edition are on the Tokyo Marathon page.

Free alerts cover the Tokyo ballot window, which opens August 14, long before kit choices matter.

Sources: Tokyo Marathon Foundation: Race Information, World Athletics: Tokyo Marathon 2026 report

Sources Tokyo Marathon Foundation Race-day conditions for the 2023 to 2026 editions from Tokyo Marathon Foundation race-day releases and World Athletics race reports, as recorded in this site's Tokyo ballot history files. Start times and course limit from marathon.tokyo/en/about/outline.