OTARU, Hokkaido — An inaugural running event was recently held in a shopping mall in this northern Japan city before business hours, giving runners the opportunity to work up an early morning sweat in an atypical setting.
A total of 197 people took part in the “Hokkaido Morning Mall Run,” held over two days at Wing Bay Otaru, a commercial complex in the Hokkaido city of Otaru, on May 23 and June 13. In the event, runners sprinted along a course of about 670 meters inside the mall, divided into beginner, intermediate and advanced groups.
Mirai Enami, 34, and Sayuri Honda, 38, sisters who joined the event, said it felt like they were “running through another world,” and that “it was fun to enjoy something out of the ordinary.”
Participants run inside “Wing Bay Otaru,” a major commercial complex, outside business hours during the “Hokkaido Morning Mall Run” in Otaru, Hokkaido, June 13, 2026. (Mainichi/Toshiki Miyama)
Otaru Bay City Development Co., which operates the facility, worked with Saiseikai Otaru Hospital from five years ago to set up an indoor walking course, saying it wanted people to take advantage of the mall’s length to stay healthy without worrying about the weather. It also created a system that gives walkers points for movie tickets and other rewards. A representative of the hospital’s operator, Hokkaido Saiseikai, said, “The results built up through the walking initiative led to this event.”
In the United Arab Emirates city of Dubai, a race called the “Mallathon,” using cool shopping malls during the summer to avoid extreme heat, has become popular.
Regarding future plans for the Japan event, organizing committee member Yoshinobu Tasaka, 51, said, “We would like to expand this new experience by also organizing something like a tournament.”
(Japanese original by Toshiki Miyama, Hokkaido Photo and Video Department)
AloJapan.com