We would like to express our gratitude to the people and communities both in Japan and abroad who have extended their hands from the disaster to the present. The theme of the Kobe Marathon is “Thanks & Friendship.” It goes without saying that runners “run for myself,” but more importantly, we aim to “run for others.” Underlying the concept is the feeling of "companion" and "community." Hyogo and Kobe, which have achieved creative reconstruction, and the actions of providing the experiences and lessons of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake to disaster victims around the world, all people are friends and share joys and sorrows, It is based on the idea that. In addition, the desire to offer hospitality to visitors to Hyogo and Kobe also springs from the consciousness of "companion" and "community." Another aspect of marathons is that the runners and supporters share the joy of finishing the run and achieving their goals. Strangers can become friends. We would like to make the power of such a marathon even bigger, and make it a marathon that sends cheers to the people and regions that have been greatly affected by disasters.