Zaozhuang Marathon

The Zaozhuang Marathon draws approximately 8,000 finishers each April on an urban road in Zaozhuang, China. It sits below the national headline races but still draws a substantial regional field. The route passes canal-city roads, civic parks, and open boulevard sections in southern Shandong. Gentle undulations are the only breaks on an otherwise flat profile.

Zaozhuang Marathon is a certified 42.195 km (26.2 mile) marathon — the standard World Athletics marathon distance.

The Zaozhuang Marathon uses a lottery or ballot through zaozhuang.marathon.org.cn, with registration windows that typically open several months before the April race. Domestic applicants register via the official marathon.org.cn portal and demand routinely exceeds the mass-participation cap of roughly 8k runners. International runners must monitor the official site for overseas entry channels and health-credential requirements, as places fill quickly once the window opens.