Run with Heart

Charity Entry for Tokyo, March 2026

Quick Facts
Total Charity Spots: 5,000
Charitable Organizations: 39
Lowest Minimum Donation: 100,000 Yen
Highest Minimum Donation: 375,000 Yen
Selection Process: Varies by charity org

Dates
(Tokyo time difference – Eastern US -13, Central US -14, Mt US -15, Pacific US -16)
Charity Application Opens: Tuesday, June 24, 2025, 11a JST – June 23 in the US
Charity Application Closes: Wednesday, July 9, 2025, 5p JST – wee morning hr in the US

100,000 Yen Donation Minimum

1. Japan IDDM Network – 40 places
   Selection Criteria: statement
2. Plan International – 198 places
   Selection Criteria: statement
3. Certified Nonprofit Organization Family House – 120 places
   Selection Criteria: statement then donation amount
4. Solaputi Kids’ Camp – 91 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount with statement and past donation/support (all 3 criteria evaluated)
5. WaterAid Japan – 104 places (10 priority slots for past donor/runners)
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
6. Pride House – 109 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
7. Japan Association for Refugees – 40 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
8. Shapla Neer Citizens’ Committee in Japan for Overseas Support – 51 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
9. Japan Marrow Donor Registry Promotion Conference – 49 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
10. Friends Without a Border Japan – 86 places
    Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement with priority given to past donors/runners
11. Japan Environmental Education Forum – 83 places
    Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement with priority given to past donors/runners
12. NPO Kidsdoor – 141 places
    Selection Criteria: donation amount then application order
13. Japan Committee, Vaccines for the World’s Children – 40 places
    Selection Criteria: donation amount then lottery
14. Chance for Children, Inc – 40 places
    Selection Criteria: donation amount then lottery with priority given to past donors/runners
15. Special Olympics Nippon Foundation – 132 places
    Selection Criteria: lottery (only lottery)
16. NPO Sodateage Net – 72 places
    Selection Criteria: “priority to past donors/runners” by application order
17. Japanese Para Sports Association – 118 places
    Selection Criteria: “priority given to previous donors” ??

120,000 Yen Donation Minimum

1. CARE International Japan – 109 places (5 priority slots for past donors/runners, 10 priority slots for corporate members/partners)
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
2. Ronald McDonald House Charities Japan – 700 places (100 priority slots for Legacy Half runners, 50 priority slots for past donors/runners)
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then application order
3. Gold Ribbon Network – 194 places (10 priority slots for past donors/runners)
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then application order
4. NPO Florence – 63 places (25 priority slots for past donors/runners)
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then application order

150,000 Yen Donation Minimum

1. TMF Sports Legacy Program #1 – 386 places
   Selection Criteria: statement
2. TMF Sports Legacy Program #2 – 50 places
   Selection Criteria: statement
3. TMF Sports Legacy Program #3 – 100 places
   Selection Criteria: statement
4. Tokyo Toy Museum – 92 places
   Selection Criteria: statement
5. NPO Madre Bonita – 40 places
   Selection Criteria: statement then donation amount
6. Japan Cancer Society – 143 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
7. Japan for UNHCR – 214 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
8. Japanese Org for International Cooperation in Family Planning – 46 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
9. ADRA Japan – 42 places (7 priority slots for past donors/runners)
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
10. Kokkyo naki Kodomotachi Children Without Borders – 93 places
    Selection Criteria: donation amount then Knk supporters, others application order
11. Kamonohashi – 152 places (20 priority slots for past donors/runners)
    Selection Criteria: donation amount then lottery

160,000 Yen Donation Minimum

1. Teach for Japan – 117 places
   Criteria selection: donation amount then application order

200,000 Yen Donation Minimum

1. Peace Winds – 410 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement
2. Action against Child Exploitation, ACE – 233 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then application order

375,000 Yen Donation Minimum

1. Room to Read – 147 places
   Selection Criteria: donation amount then statement

Organizations that only allow applications from residents of Japan
Development Foundation for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries – 70 places
Disaster Prevention and Emergency Medical Service Association – 45 places
Children’s Cancer Association of Japan CCAJ – 40 places

Link to Tokyo Charity Webpage

Now for some background information and my tips.

The Tokyo charity process is different than most race charities. This is in essence a blind auction and you will pay in full upfront. The donation total will be due a few short weeks after bidding concludes – last year the money must have been paid between July 15-Aug 15. You only get to submit a donation bid to 1 charity. Read that again, you’re only going to get one shot (per year) and you have no idea what anyone else is bidding, or writing, or how many others you are competing against. You can be sure that every charity will have more applicants than spots, so you will want to strategize and pick wisely!

Pay careful attention to what the selection criteria is for each charity. There are three primary criteria at play, 1. donation amount – that’s how much money you agree to commit to the charity, 2. statement – you’ll have a few sentences (truly a few, it’s quite short due a strict character count limit) where you include a personal story about why you’re bidding for that charity and your reason for wanting to run Tokyo, and 3. application order – the order in which bids are received. Do note most charities have two parameters outlined in a hierarchy which they will use to determine their selection, the second parameter is the tie breaker. Some charities will use a lottery as a tiebreaker so there can be an element of chance as well.

What all this means is, you want to give thought, in advance, both to how much you want to bid and how that amount should influence the charity you bid for. As an example of solid strategy, if you don’t want to commit to a bid much over the minimum then you might want to pick a charity that is prioritizing the statement and spend your time crafting a thoughtful essay – remember keep it short. On the opposite end of the spectrum is someone who has deep pockets and is ready to throw a lot of money at this effort. If that’s you, I suggest not picking a charity who will emphasize the statement above all else. Here’s another example, if you wait to apply and are submitting a bid closer to the minimum, it’s probably best not to go for a charity that is using application order as a tiebreaker.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say completely ignore the mission of the charity in your decision making, but I would put that criteria quite low on your strategy list. Instead I would approach this from the standpoint of pairing your chosen application strength, whether that is money, words, and/or timing with the selection criteria of the charity that seems the best fit. That is unless you just aren’t all that committed to running Tokyo this coming year. Best of luck to all those charity hopefuls out there!