Nikolauslauf Michendorf

Nikolauslauf Michendorf is a pre-Christmas running event in Michendorf, Brandenburg, held annually on the Sunday after Saint Nicholas Day. Participants must wear a Santa outfit: at minimum, a red coat and red hat, with the coat long enough to reach within a hand's breadth above the knee. The organizing Laufclub Michendorf describes it as Germany's largest costumed Santa run, usually drawing around 1,000 participants rather than just a small local field. The races take place in the heart of Michendorf, offering a 1 km Zipfelmützenlauf for young children, plus 2.5 km, 5 km, 10 km, and a 4 x 2.5 km relay. The children's race starts first in the late morning, followed by a mass start for the other distances. The relay features teams passing a Santa sack instead of a normal baton. The event originated from an idea shared by a few enthusiastic runners at a club meeting, and it now is part of the Meilenweit Laufcup, maintaining a family and club atmosphere built around hundreds of runners dressed as Santa.