The recent backlash over a fake marathon event indicates Thailand has a glut of running events, and only large and experienced event organisers can survive as runners become more selective to control costs, says the Thai Mass Participation Sports Trade Association (TMPSA).
On May 25, runners were left stranded at "Run for Destination 2025" at Suanluang Rama IX park as the organiser, who was holding this event for the first time, failed to appear. Several runners filed complaints against the organiser.
Rut Jiroajvanichakorn, president of the TMPSA, said this incident should not affect sentiment for running events, as failed events account for less than 5% of total annual races.
He said the incident highlights how organising a running event is not as easy as some new organisers may believe.
Organising expenses, such as labour and apparel costs, have risen steadily over the past three years, but organisers are unable to raise their ticket prices to cover such additional costs.
The sluggish economy caused runners to choose fewer events to join, prioritising major races or cheaper ones, while some even quit running for other sports.
Due to the oversupply of running events, with over 2,000 races last year, organisers find it more difficult to seek sponsors as companies also have many races to choose from, he said.
Mr Rut said for a 10-kilometre race, the average ticket price is 600 baht, requiring at least 1,000-3,000 runners. Without sponsors, the organisers might not be able to gain profit at all.
Amid fierce competition, small or new running events are facing more obstacles than large and experienced organisers and races, he said.
After this incident, he suggested runners exercise caution when applying for a race, such as checking the organiser's background.
The TMPSA represents companies that organise over 50 running and sports events in Thailand, and the organiser for this fake race is not a member, he said.
The association also warned runners to avoid events that receive payments via personal accounts, or races that offer excessive and unreasonable prizes or which have few sponsors.
Regarding the outlook for the running event sector, Mr Rut said the number of Thai runners is expected to keep growing, driven by the younger generation, although they might not join running events.
The decline in foreign tourists should not affect running events in Thailand, since this market typically accounts for only 10% of total race runners.
There is still room to grow this market, thanks to several international standard races in Thailand, which should be promoted to capture a larger market.
As managing director of Mice and Communication, the organiser of the Bangsaen Series marathons, its Bangsaen 21 Half Marathon is the only Thai race awarded a platinum label for a road race, the highest tier among 16 races by World Athletics.
In the same tier as the world renowned Boston Marathon, it attracted over 45,000 applications in 2024, exceeding the capacity of 12,000 runners.
Now that the government is promoting "Amazing Thailand Grand Tourism & Sports Year 2025", he said Thailand can take advantage of the competitive ticket prices.
For instance, Bangsaen 21 costs only 1,600 baht per person, roughly half the price of races in the same tier in Japan.
Last week, the company also held Bangsaen 10 for 5- and 10-km races, attracting over 12,000 runners. It expected to generate over 500 million baht for Bangsaen and nearby areas.
