Kenya's Sheila Chepkirui will defend her Nagoya Women's Marathon title on March 8, 2026, coinciding with International Women's Day. The 15th edition of the World Athletics Platinum Label race—the world's largest women-only marathon—features 10 athletes with personal bests under 2:22:00, including Ethiopia's Aynalem Desta and Japan's Honami Maeda. Japanese runners target qualification for the Marathon Grand Championship toward the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
The Nagoya Women's Marathon is scheduled for Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Nagoya, Japan. Approximately 20,000 women will participate, with finishers receiving a Baccarat crystal tumbler. A press conference is set for March 7.
Defending champion Sheila Chepkirui, 35, won the 2025 edition in 2:20:40 ahead of Japan's Sayaka Sato and Bahrain's Eunice Chebichii Chumba. Her personal best of 2:17:29 comes from her 2022 Valencia debut. Recent results include victory at the 2024 New York City Marathon, runner-up in Berlin 2023, and third in New York in November 2025.
Top challengers include 22-year-old Ethiopian Aynalem Desta (2:17:37 PB from Amsterdam win, October 2025—her third marathon) and Japan's Honami Maeda, Asian record-holder with 2:18:59 from second in Osaka 2024. Maeda's latest full marathon was ninth in Berlin (2:24:36, September 2025), followed by a 1:10:07 half-marathon in Houston (January 2026).
The elite field boasts Bahrain's Eunice Chebichii Chumba (2:20:02), Kenya's Selly Chepyego Kaptich (2:20:03 PB, Barcelona 2023), Japan's Sayaka Sato (2:20:59; 13th at 2025 World Championships marathon in Tokyo), Spain's Majida Maayouf (2:21:01), Japan's Yuka Ando (2:21:18; 2024 Nagoya winner), Ayuko Suzuki (2:21:33), and Rika Kaseda (2:21:55; 2023 Worlds rep). Chumba placed 16th at the 2025 Worlds.
Other notables: Australia's Genevieve Gregson (2:23:08), Morocco's Hayat Benhenia (2:24:48) and Soukaina Atanane (2:24:57). Japan's deeper field includes Natsuki Omori (2:25:36), Rino Goshima (2:26:08; 10,000m PB 30:53.31), Sakiho Tsutsui (2:26:51), Honoka Tanaike (2:27:30), Yuri Mitsune (2:29:04), Kaena Takeyama (2:29:20), marathon debutante Wakana Kabasawa (10,000m 31:03.14), and pacemaker Nozomi Tanaka.