ASICS Hong Kong Half-Marathon Championships: Dates, Tickets & Venue (Hong Kong)

A championship race over 21.1 km

This is Hong Kong’s sanctioned half-marathon championship. The race is held over the standard half distance of 21.1 km on public roads on Sunday, December 13, 2026. ASICS is the title sponsor and the HKAAA sanctions the race, so it sits on the official athletics calendar rather than being a casual fun run.

Sanctioning matters to the people in the field. Club runners and local competitive athletes use races like this one to set official times on a course run under the federation’s rules. This makes the front of the race noticeably quicker and more tactical than at an open mass-participation event.

Entries are closed and the field is full. The race organiser’s official site carries the course, start area and results.

December on Hong Kong’s roads

Mid-December is the city’s best running weather. Typhoon season is over, the humidity falls sharply, and mornings are usually cool and dry. That is why the local road-racing season is packed into the winter months.

The cooler air does not mean an easy course. Hong Kong roads rarely stay flat for long. Flyovers, harbourfront stretches and hillside approaches all change the effort, so seasoned local runners pace by feel rather than by a fixed split.

Runners typically:

• collect race kits on the days before the race, as Hong Kong events usually require
• warm up in layers and drop them at the bag deposit
• carry an Octopus card for the trip home on the MTR

Cheering from the kerb on race morning

Watching costs nothing and needs no ticket. These habits help on the day.

• Getting there: Road closures go up around the course, so spectators come by MTR, not by taxi. The Octopus card works on trains, buses and minibuses, and also at convenience stores along the route.
• What to shout: Local crowds call out “ga yau!” (加油), the Cantonese for “add oil”, which means “keep going”. Runners recognise it straight away.
• Where to stand: Spectators usually spread out along the final kilometres, where the championship finish gets most tense. Course marshals keep the road clear, so people stay behind the barriers and cross only at marked points.
• Paying: Cafés and 7-Elevens near most Hong Kong routes take Octopus and cards. Tipping is not expected at counter-service food.

Hong Kong runners are used to sharing narrow pavements. Supporters keep bags and pushchairs tucked in on footpath sections so that people walking through can still get past.

Making a weekend of it

The race falls on a Sunday. Visiting supporters often stay the weekend and pair the morning with an easy afternoon.

After the race, people head for these spots:

• Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade: flat harbour walking with a view of the Hong Kong Island skyline.
• Victoria Peak: the Peak Tram or bus No. 15 goes up. Clear December days give the sharpest views of the year.
• Dim sum: a classic recovery meal. Cantonese teahouses fill up with families from late morning on Sundays.

December is also high season for hotels, because the Christmas lights along the harbour bring in regional visitors. Visiting runners usually stay near an MTR station on the Tsuen Wan or Island lines for the simplest race-morning journey.