Organisers cancelled the 36th PJ Half Marathon on Saturday, 5 September 2026, less than a day before the 3.30am flag-off at Laman MBPJ. The PJ Half Marathon Facebook page said the Air Pollutant Index was still in the unhealthy range. NST published the same statement that morning. About 10,000 runners had been expected, including a foreign field from 34 countries that Mayor Datuk Mohd Yazid Sairi cited in August.
What the Facebook post actually said
The organisers wrote that the latest forecast pointed to some improvement over 24 hours, but the reading stayed unhealthy. They named runners, volunteers, crew, and everyone involved in the event. Safety came first. Cancelling, they said, was the most responsible call they could make at that point. NST carried the quote in full. That is the primary record, not a paraphrase from a running group chat.
Registered runners who still wanted to go out on Sunday could use an optional 5km route. The post did not recast the 30km, 21km, or 10km waves as delayed starts. Those distances are off. If you trained for five hours of hills, that is the fact that matters. The 5km option is a consolation loop, not a rescheduled championship.
What had been on the start list
RaceXasia listed flag-off times that never happened: 30km at 3.30am with a five-hour cutoff, 21km at 3.45am with four hours, 10km at 7.00am with two hours, 5km at 7.15am with one hour. There was also a 1km costume fun run. Organisers were Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya and Puncak Ventures, with Persatuan Olahraga Para Selangor as co-organiser. Race kit collection ran 3 to 5 September at Jaya Shopping Centre in Section 14.
Paul Tan's Malay desk had already published MBPJ's road-closure list on 3 September. Jalan Yong Shook Lin in front of Laman MBPJ was due to close from 6pm Saturday to noon Sunday. From 3am to 9am Sunday the list included Jalan Sultan, Jalan Barat, Jalan Utara, Jalan Templer, Jalan Selangor, and a long string of SS1, SS2, and Section 14 streets. Drivers were told to use Jalan Barat toward Section 14 and Seapark, and Jalan 222 toward the city centre. Parking for the race village was planned at Kompleks A and C, MBPJ.
Whether every cone still went out after the Saturday morning cancellation is a local-traffic question. Treat Sunday morning as disrupted anyway. Haze cancelled the race. It did not automatically reopen every lane at 3am.
Refunds, next year, and the haze around it
RaceXasia terms already said the organiser can cancel for weather or acts of God, and that refunds are not automatic. Watch the Facebook page and the RaceXasia listing for any later note on medals, deferred entries, or fee handling. Do not assume a 2027 reserved slot until they write it down.
The same weekend, Selangor Para Sukma postponed four sports after an API of 169 in Shah Alam and Klang, according to NST quoting Bernama. That is a different event in a neighbouring city. It is useful only as context: the haze was not a PJ-only complaint. Laman MBPJ sits next to Taman Jaya LRT on the Kelana Jaya Line. If you still want a short outdoor loop, pick a park with shade and skip the long road course that never started.
Practical Details
- Status: Cancelled 5 September 2026 due to unhealthy haze. Optional 5km for registered runners who still wanted to run on 6 September.
- What was planned: 36th PJ Half Marathon, Sunday 6 September 2026, Laman MBPJ, Jalan Yong Shook Lin, Petaling Jaya
- Planned flag-off: 30km 3.30am, 21km 3.45am, 10km 7.00am, 5km 7.15am
- Organisers: MBPJ and Puncak Ventures, co-organiser Persatuan Olahraga Para Selangor
- Nearest LRT: Taman Jaya, Kelana Jaya Line
- Website: RaceXasia PJ Half Marathon 2026
