Ahmad Zahid Flags Off Malaysia Marathon 2026 Fun Run

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 30 (Bernama) -- Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi today flagged off 10,000 participants in the 5-kilometre (km) Fun Run as part of the Malaysia Marathon 2026.

The programme, held at the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) grounds, was organised in conjunction with the 2026 National Day celebrations.

Also present were Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing and Deputy Works Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan.

The programme began with the singing of the national anthem, ‘Negaraku’, followed by a performance by the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) band before the flag-off ceremony.

The event was further enlivened by a one-kilometre Malaysian flag parade involving 1,000 students from Kolej Poly-tech MARA (KPTM) Bangi.

The inaugural event, recognised by world athletics governing body World Athletics, successfully brought together 25,000 local and international runners across four race categories.

The event began with Tiong flagging off 2,000 runners in the 42-km Full Marathon at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, followed by the 21-km and 10-km categories involving 8,000 and 5,000 participants respectively, which started earlier this morning.

This edition also saw the KLCC grounds serve as the finish line for all categories, replacing the usual venue, Dataran Merdeka.

Meanwhile, Malaysia Marathon president Eddy Casmady said the organisers planned to hold next year’s edition over two days, on Aug 14 and 15, to accommodate the growing number of local and international participants.

He said that although the existing running route had been recognised until 2030, the organisers were still studying alternative routes to help runners achieve personal bests.

Eddy said the RM50,000 incentive for breaking the national record this year would be carried forward to the next edition as an added incentive for local runners to strive for better results.

Commenting on the event’s uniqueness, he said the midnight start was a distinctive feature that enabled Muslim participants to complete the run before dawn, setting it apart from other marathon events in Malaysia.

--BERNAMA