Haze forces Kuching Marathon 2026 cancellation at eleventh hour

The Kuching Marathon 2026 scheduled for September 27 was cancelled due to the haze affecting Kuching and nearby areas.

The decision followed advice from authorities prioritising health and safety, with finishers' medals available at Plaza Merdeka.

Over 13,000 runners registered for this major international event, which has grown significantly since its inception in 2014.

KUCHING, Sept 25 — The Kuching Marathon 2026 scheduled for Sunday (September 27) has been cancelled due to the prevailing haze situation affecting Kuching and surrounding areas.

In announcing the cancellation, the Kuching Marathon Association (KMA) said it had been continuously monitoring Air Pollutant Index (API) readings and other environmental indicators since the onset of the haze.

It said the decision was made after consultation with relevant authorities and medical advisers, with the health and safety of participants, crew members, volunteers, officials, medical teams, and the public taking precedence.

“To honour the commitment of our runners, all registered participants may collect their finisher medal and finisher tee starting tomorrow at Plaza Merdeka Shopping Centre (Alfresco Area),” KMA said in a statement.

It added that detailed collection schedules and instructions would be announced on its official social media platforms.

The cancellation came shortly after State Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah visited the Kuching Marathon registration and race pack collection at Plaza Merdeka.

When met by reporters, Abdul Karim had said the decision on whether the marathon could proceed would depend on the prevailing haze situation and assessments by the relevant authorities.

Abdul Karim, who is also State Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development Minister, said the State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) had established indicators based on API readings to determine whether outdoor events could be safely held.

“I’m not in the capacity to say yes or no for the race to be conducted, because we in Sarawak do have the SDMC to determine whether an outdoor event should be held or not,” he said.

He also said more than 13,000 participants had registered for this year’s Kuching Marathon.

The first Kuching Marathon was held on August 17, 2014, and has since grown into one of Borneo’s largest international mass-participation running events.

Participation grew rapidly, surpassing 10,000 runners by 2019, with subsequent editions attracting participants from more than 40 countries. — The Borneo Post

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原定于9月27日举行的2026年古晋马拉松因古晋及周边地区受雾霾影响而取消。

该决定是采纳了当局优先考虑健康和安全的建议，完赛奖牌将在独立广场发放。

超过 13,000 名跑步者报名参加了这项重要的国际赛事，该赛事自 2014 年创办以来规模显著扩大。

古晋，9月25日讯——原定于星期日（9月27日）举行的2026年古晋马拉松因古晋及周边地区持续的雾霾天气而取消。

古晋马拉松协会（KMA）在宣布取消比赛时表示，自雾霾开始以来，他们一直在持续监测空气污染指数（API）读数和其他环境指标。

声明称，该决定是在与相关部门和医疗顾问协商后做出的，参赛人员、船员、志愿者、官员、医疗团队和公众的健康和安全是首要考虑因素。

“为了表彰跑者的付出，所有注册参赛者可于明日起在独立广场购物中心（露天区域）领取完赛奖牌和完赛T恤，”KMA在一份声明中表示。

该公司还表示，详细的收集时间表和说明将在其官方社交媒体平台上公布。

就在州旅游、创意产业和表演艺术部长拿督斯里阿卜杜勒·卡林·拉赫曼·哈姆扎访问古晋马拉松在独立广场的报名和参赛包领取处后不久，比赛就被取消了。

阿卜杜勒·卡里姆在接受记者采访时表示，马拉松能否举行将取决于当时的雾霾情况以及相关部门的评估。

同时担任州青年、体育和创业发展部长的阿卜杜勒·卡里姆表示，州灾害管理委员会 (SDMC) 已根据 API 读数制定了指标，以确定户外活动是否可以安全举行。

“我没有权力决定是否举办这场比赛，因为在砂拉越，我们有砂拉越运动管理委员会（SDMC）来决定是否应该举办户外活动，”他说。

他还表示，今年古晋马拉松已有超过13000名参赛者报名。

首届古晋马拉松于 2014 年 8 月 17 日举行，此后发展成为婆罗洲规模最大的国际大众参与跑步赛事之一。

参与人数迅速增长，到2019年已超过1万名跑者，此后的几届比赛吸引了来自40多个国家的参赛者。——《婆罗洲邮报》

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