Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025

Saturday May 24th 2025 I ran the Ulaan Bataar Marathon in Mongolia. Find below my full race coverage from this marathon and some tourist impressions from and around Ulaan Bataar.

Ulaan Bataar and the Mongolian experience
I can’t even begin to describe how amazing my visit to Ulaan Bataar, Mongolia was! The energy of the city, mixed with its rich history and stunning natural landscapes, blew me away. From the bustling streets to the serene parks, every corner had something special. Let me tell you about the highlights of my trip!

Right in the center of the city, I visited the Denghis Khan Museum, one of the most impressive and modern museums I’ve ever seen. Opened in 2023, it’s a stunning building—both architecturally and in the way it brings Mongolian history to life. The museum is entirely dedicated to the legacy of Chinggis Khan (also spelled Genghis Khan), showcasing artifacts, historical documents, interactive exhibits, and multimedia displays that explore the rise of the Mongol Empire and its lasting global impact. I spent hours exploring the exhibits and came away with a much deeper appreciation for how this single figure shaped the course of history. The museum isn’t just educational—it’s an experience!

Just a short walk from the museum is Sükhbaatar Square, the heart of Ulaanbaatar. It’s a vast and impressive open space where people gather for events, protests, or just to hang out. In the center stands a statue of Damdin Sükhbaatar, the revolutionary hero who helped Mongolia gain independence from Chinese rule in the early 20th century. Surrounding the square is the majestic Government Palace, which houses key state institutions and is guarded by enormous seated statues of Chinggis Khan and other Mongol leaders. Being there gave me a real sense of Mongolia’s pride in its sovereignty and storied past.

Of course, I couldn’t miss the jaw-dropping Chinggis Khan Statue Complex, about 50 kilometers outside the city. This colossal stainless-steel statue of Chinggis Khan on horseback stands 40 meters tall and is the largest equestrian statue in the world. It’s so massive, you can actually go inside and ride an elevator to a viewing platform in the horse’s head! Beneath the statue is a museum that delves further into the history of the Mongol Empire—again reinforcing just how much impact this single leader had on the world.

To balance all the historical sightseeing, I spent a day exploring the peaceful and beautiful Gorkhi-Terelj National Park, just a short drive from Ulaan Bataar. The natural beauty was unreal—lush valleys, alpine forests, and dramatic rock formations. One of the coolest sights there was Turtle Rock, a huge natural stone formation that looks just like a giant turtle. I also had the chance to go horseback riding through the rolling hills, which was the perfect way to take in the scenery and experience the nomadic spirit that still lives strong in Mongolia.

Every part of Ulaan Bataar felt like a blend of old and new, of epic history and vibrant modern life. It’s clear that Mongolians are deeply proud of their heritage, and they should be—there’s nowhere else like it. If you ever get the chance to visit, don’t hesitate. Ulaanbaatar is unforgettable!

PS: I also had the please of beating up the local street chess players, lots about this in the report too.

Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 (Mongolia) - Tor Rønnow

Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025
The event carried a multitude of distances from 500 meters up to 5K, 10K, Half Marathon and, of course, the Marathon distance itself. The roads of Ulaan Bataar were completely fenced off from 06.00 AM to 6 PM, this was extremely delightful both for us runners but for the many citizens and families of Ulaan Bataar thus enjoying a car-free day in their capital. Just great!

The event was quite nicely organized, some flaws with some missing water at km 10 and 15 for the slower runners like myself and rather poor information in English for the international runners. However, I will still give this event and a visit to the Ulaan Bataar Marathon my very best recommendation, these memories will stay in your mind for a long, long time!

Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 (Mongolia) - Tor Rønnow

See or relive the Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 here (and in Mongolian)

Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)
Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – bilder av Tor Rønnow (Svenska)
Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – bilder von Tor Rønnow (Deutsch)
Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)
2025 年烏蘭巴托馬拉松 – 圖片/攝影:Tor Rønnow(中文)
2025 年烏蘭巴托馬拉松 – 圖片/照片由 Tor Rønnow(日文)提供
Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – photos de Tor Rønnow (Français)
Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – foto di Tor Rønnow (Italiano)
Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – fotos del Tor Rønnow (Español)
Ulaan Bataar Marathon 2025 – beelden van Tor Rønnow (Nederlandse)

Copenhagen Marathon 2025

Sunday May 11th 2025 I ran the magnificient Copenhagen Marathon 2025, the largest ever marathon committed in Denmark. I had the pleasure of running the first half as pacer on the 5.00-balloon, this was very successful, my second half less so (in terms of the running pace). The route was absolutely spectacular and with MANY people out cheering in the streets, truly a superb day in the danish capital.
The race report below will be updated shortly with more comments, links etc. but you can already now see or relive the race from my pictures from along the entire route.

Copenhagen Marathon 2025 (Denmark) - Tor Rønnow

See or relive the Copenhagen Marathon 2025 here:

Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)
Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – bilder av Tor Rønnow (Svenska)
Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – bilder von Tor Rønnow (Deutsch)
Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)
2025 哥本哈根馬拉松 – 圖片/攝影:Tor Rønnow(中文)
2025 年哥本哈根馬拉松 – 圖片/攝影:Tor Rønnow(日文)
Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – photos de Tor Rønnow (Français)
Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – foto di Tor Rønnow (Italiano)
Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – fotos del Tor Rønnow (Español)
Copenhagen Marathon 2025 – beelden van Tor Rønnow (Nederlandse)

Steve Fuller Marathon 2025

Sunday April 20th 2025 I hosted the “Steve Fuller Marathon” to honor my american running friend Steve. Find below my full race coverage from this marathon and a few impressions from time spend with Steve and his wife Henna here in Copenhagen, Denmark. We managed to visit both the Museum of Modern Art Louisiana north of Copenhagen and the Tivoli Gardens by night time (Sunday after the race), very enjoyable memories, not of murder, but of quality running blended with many discussions, the scenic views of the marathon route “RudersdalRuten” and the coast line north of Copenhagen. This was a one-off event to the legacy of Steve Fuller, a fellow marathoner dear to so many of us.

Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 (Denmark) - Tor Rønnow

See or relive the Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 here:

Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)
Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – bilder av Tor Rønnow (Svenska)
Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – bilder von Tor Rønnow (Deutsch)
Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)
2025史蒂夫富勒馬拉松 – 圖片/照片由Tor Rønnow拍攝(中文)
スティーブ フラー マラソン 2025 – 画像/写真 by Tor Rønnow (日本語)
Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – photos de Tor Rønnow (Français)
Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – foto di Tor Rønnow (Italiano)
Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – fotos del Tor Rønnow (Español)
Steve Fuller Marathon 2025 – beelden van Tor Rønnow (Nederlandse)

Seoul Marathon 2025

Sunday March 16th 2025 I ran the Seoul Marathon in South Korea. Find below my full race coverage from this marathon and some tourist impressions from the very impressive city Seoul.

Seoul
I had like 2.5 days in Seoul for tourist activities and managed to see a number of landmarks including the Jogyasa Temple, Gyeongbokgung, Blue House and National Folk Museum of Korea. Seoul is for sure a very exciting place to be, heaps of possibilities for (luxury) shopping, good food and just experiencing the Korean way of life in this impressive, modern metropole. Do go visit!

Seoul Marathon 2025 (South Korea) - Tor Rønnow

Seoul Marathon 2025
The event carried the marathon distance only and with a steep demand to document a previous sub-5 hour marathon achievement. The whole business was hampered by the website/SoMe channels and communication being essentially only-Korean and on race day, the slower runners like myself had their race “destroyed” by much-too-early road openings, thus running in open traffic, on pavements, waiting for green signals etc. This was a shame for an otherwise very nice event and marathon route, visiting many landmarks and spectacular sites in Seoul. I’ll recommend this race to all sub-5 marathoners.

Seoul Marathon 2025 (South Korea) - Tor Rønnow

See or relive the Seoul Marathon 2025 here (and in Korean)

Seoul Marathon 2025 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)
Seoul Marathon 2025 – bilder av Tor Rønnow (Svenska)
Seoul Marathon 2025 – bilder von Tor Rønnow (Deutsch)
Seoul Marathon 2025 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)
2025 年首爾馬拉松 – 圖片/照片由 Tor Rønnow 拍攝(中文)
ソウルマラソン2025 – 画像・写真:Tor Rønnow(日本語)
Seoul Marathon 2025 – photos de Tor Rønnow (Français)
Seoul Marathon 2025 – foto di Tor Rønnow (Italiano)
Seoul Marathon 2025 – fotos del Tor Rønnow (Español)
Seoul Marathon 2025 – beelden van Tor Rønnow (Nederlandse)

Marathon du Sénégal 2025

Sunday Feb. 23rd 2025 I ran Marathon du Sénégal in and about Saly (south of Dakar, Sénégal). Find below my full race coverage from this marathon and tourist impressions from Dakar.

Dakar and Gorée Island
I enjoyed 2 days in Dakar and 2 days in Saly, give or take. Dakar is famous for the now terminated Dakar Rally but also the the Gorée Island, which I shortly visited Friday afternoon. To see the “Maison des Esclaves” from where the slaves were deported to America made a big impression and send associations to so many things, for some reason firstly the 1970s TV-series “Roots” and the story of “Kunta Kinte” based on the novel of Alex Haley (I read the novel as well when I was 11). So take a look at the picture below of the “Door of No Return” and dwell a few minutes of the impacts of the american slavery. Makes me so sad on so many levels, for so many destinies over so many hundreds of years!
I saw a bunch of other landmarks in Dakar as well, most notably Monument de la Renaissance Africaine and Mosque of the Divinity. But Gorée was “it”.

 Marathon du Sénégal 2025 (Sénégal) - Tor Rønnow

Marathon du Sénégal 2025
The event carried several distances: marathon, half marathon, 10 K and 5 K. The route was almost completely flat, for all distances out south and back the same way. There were security/Police all the way and they stood there even waiting for me to finish all day long, cudos and big thanks for that effort! Well, it became VERY WARM during the day, 34 C in the shadows, we ran in direct sun, thus it became impossible for me to run at about half ways. My suggestion for going forward: add some bananas, some Coca Cola and drinks with electrolytes for the half and marathon runners, ie. at the water stations at 10 km, 15 km and 21 km (which are passed twice by the marathon runners). Also, if possible, add a page in English on the website, gathering all the important information about the race, registration etc.
In total, I am very happy to have completed this race and experienced both Dakar and Saly. Thanks!

Marathon du Sénégal 2025 (Sénégal) - Tor Rønnow

See or relive Marathon du Sénégal 2025 here (and in Arabic)

Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)
Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – bilder av Tor Rønnow (Svenska)
Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – bilder von Tor Rønnow (Deutsch)
Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)
2025 年塞內加爾馬拉松 – 圖片/照片由 Tor Rønnow 拍攝(中文)
セネガルマラソン2025 – 画像・写真:Tor Rønnow(日本語)
Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – photos de Tor Rønnow (Français)
Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – foto di Tor Rønnow (Italiano)
Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – fotos del Tor Rønnow (Español)
Marathon du Sénégal 2025 – beelden van Tor Rønnow (Nederlandse)