The Course: Along the Coast, Through Town and Back Inland
The 2025 marathon was a single loop that started and finished at Sandakan Sports Complex on Jalan Sibuga [1][2]. It ran south to Batu Sapi at about 6 km, then east along the coast through Kampung Istimewa and Kampung Karamunting to Tanah Merah at 12 km, and into the town centre at about 16 km [1]. From there it went east to Kampung Berhala at 19 km and up the coast, then west past Kampung Forest to Batu 3 at 25 km. The last third turned inland, past the army camp at 29 to 30 km, through Bandar Sibuga Jaya at 33 km, and back through Batu 6 and Batu 5 to the finish [1].
The organisers say the routes passed St Michael's Church, the Sandakan Heritage Trail and the JCI Clock Tower [3].
It is not a flat course. On the official elevation chart the route never rises above about 55 m, but there are short, sharp climbs to about 50 m near 3 km and in the town centre around 16 to 17 km, a smaller rise around 29 to 30 km, and a lumpy stretch from 35 km to 38 km, when legs are tired. The long coastal sections, from about 5 km to 15 km and from 20 km to 27 km, are close to sea level [1].
The Weather: Saturated Air in the Middle of the Night
Sandakan Airport, about 6 km north of the start, recorded 26°C at 2am on race morning, with a dew point of 26°C, 100% humidity and a 3-knot wind [4]. At the 4am half-marathon start it was 26°C and 94% humidity; at the 6am 10 km start, 25°C and 100%; at 7am, 26°C. It then warmed to 28°C at 8am and 29°C at 9am, when the marathon closed, with the dew point at 26°C throughout. No rain was reported during the race [4].
A dew point of 25°C to 26°C is at the top of the range runners find oppressive: sweat barely evaporates, so you heat up faster than the temperature suggests. The finish time decides the race you get. A four-hour marathoner, done at 6am, ran the whole way at 25°C to 26°C; a runner using most of the seven hours finished at about 8.30am, in 28°C to 29°C [4]. Start slower than your flat-course pace and use the cooling station near 40 km [1].
Aid Stations and Cut-offs
The 2025 marathon map marks 14 water stations, from the first at about 2.5 km to the last at 40 km, roughly every 2.5 to 3 km. Ten of them also had a medic and most had toilets. Bananas were at 11 km, about 23 km and 29 km, and there was a cooling station beside the 40 km water station. Prayer tents stood at several stations, and mosques along the route are marked [1].
The cut-offs are long: seven hours for the marathon (9am in 2025), four hours for the half marathon and two hours for the 10 km (both 8am) [2]. The results list official pacers for 4:30, 5:00, 5:30 and 6:00 finishes [5].
Medals and online e-certificates go only to finishers inside the cut-off, at all three distances, and only marathon finishers get a finisher tee [2].
How Fast the Field Is
The 2025 marathon was won by Dennis Isika, a veteran-category runner, in 2:57:15; Welling Lai won the women's race in 3:18:51. Tenth place overall was 3:19:50 for men and 4:33:03 for women [5].
The half marathon was won in 1:21:12 by Sheron Sariman and in 1:37:46 by Jackline Nzivo, with tenth place at 1:35:52 and 2:08:04. The 10 km was won in 36:19 and 45:13, and tenth was 46:02 and 58:06 [5]. Those lists mix open and veteran runners.
Prizes are paid ten deep, separately in the open and veteran categories (veterans are 41 and over). In the marathon they run from RM1,000 for first to RM200 for eighth to tenth; in the half marathon from RM800 to RM100; in the 10 km from RM500 to RM50 [2]. A steady club runner has a real chance of prize money, especially a woman or a veteran. Winners must go through verification at the finish line to claim [2].
Race Weekend Logistics
Race packs were collected at the race expo in the Dewan Serbaguna at Sandakan Sports Complex on Friday and Saturday, 14 and 15 November, from 10am to 5pm; the expo was free and open to the public [2]. Postal delivery was offered within Malaysia only, with packs expected 5 to 7 days before race day [2].
Entries are not refunded once paid, changing your details after registering costs an RM30 admin fee, and anyone caught swapping bibs is disqualified and their identity shared with other running events [2].
The race is organised by Persatuan Ortopedik Sandakan, a local orthopaedic association, with the Kinabalu Running Club, and more than 200 volunteers helped in 2025. It raised support for the Malaysian Association of Paediatric Palliative Care [3]. It is also one of the three races in the Sabah Marathon Series: runners who registered for the series and finished the Borneo International Marathon, the Tawau Marathon and the Elopura marathon within the cut-offs got a commemorative tee and medal [2].
Should You Enter the 2026 Race?
Yes, if you are a slower marathoner who wants seven hours and plenty of water, a club runner chasing prize money, or you are collecting the Sabah Marathon Series. It suits runners who have raced in humid heat before.
Think twice if you want a flat course for a personal best, or you cannot face a start in the middle of the night.
The fourth edition is on Sunday 22 November 2026 [6][7]. The organiser has moved the starts earlier: the marathon at 12.30am with a 7.30am cut-off, the half marathon at 2am (cut-off 6am) and the 10 km at 5.30am (cut-off 7.30am) [8]. Race packs are collected on 20 and 21 November, and there is no collection on race day unless the organiser says otherwise [8][9]. The 2026 route map and entry fees were not on the organiser's own site when this was written [6][9], so check them on the registration page before you book.
Nobody from this site ran the race. This review draws on the organiser's race information, rules and route map, the results, airport weather records and local reporting.