Running as fast as a bullet: The Nagoya Women’s Marathon
Wednesday, June 25, 2025
By: Marguerita Cheng, Charm City Run Race Team Member
Running is a great way to train the mind and body. It requires dedication, endurance, and goals.
A week after I ran in the Tokyo Marathon, I rode the Nozomi to run the Nagoya Women’s Marathon on March 9, 2025.
The train itself is remarkable with the capability of exceeding speeds of 300 km/h. It made me think of International Women’s Day. The purpose of International Women’s Day, March 8, was to raise awareness about discrimination and to drive gender parity. The 2025 IWD theme was “Accelerate Action” to create a more inclusive world for women.
“Worldwide, women are more educated today than at any point in history, and gender gaps between women’s and men’s academic attainments are rare in countries with high levels of educational achievement. In fact, women in some 50 countries on average have achieved a higher level of education than men have, and in others, they live longer and are healthier,” according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
What better way to represent accelerate than riding on Japan’s fastest train to the marathon?
According to new research by RunnerClick, 45.7% of marathon runners are women.
What an amazing way to celebrate the Women’s movement albeit not as fast as many would like it. I rode it on my way to the Nagoya Women’s Marathon, a race for female runners over the classic distance of 42 km and 195 meters, held in Nagoya, Japan.
The Nagoya Women’s Marathon has transformed into a mass participation marathon with participants of 15,000 women in 2012.
“Starting and finishing at VANTELIN DOME NAGOYA, the route is designed to showcase the city’s landmarks. The course is also popular for being wide and mostly flat, which makes it easy for runners to set and break records. While the race still serves as a world-leading competition among elite athletes, its 7-hour-long time limit makes it beginner-friendly and easy to finish. (The completion rate of 2024:97.3%),” the marathon’s website said.
My daughters were tracking my progress and I stopped 21st mile to take a quick water break and film a k video for them to share the experience.
I’m proud to say during Nagoya, I ran 14 minutes faster than the Tokyo Marathon just one week ago. I improved my personal best time in the marathon by minutes.
It was Women’s History month, and I had the opportunity to run in the largest women’s only marathon in the world. I was able to run as fast as I could. It goes to show you to do your best and don’t let anyone decide what you are capable of.
I’m inspired to return next year with my daughters.