BTS’ Suga secretly joins marathon before Stanford concert
Suga of BTS quietly joined thousands of runners at San Francisco’s annual Bay to Breakers race before taking the stage for the group’s sold-out concert at Stanford Stadium in California.
ABC7 News reported that the K-pop singer participated in the 12-kilometer race on Sunday without alerting organizers in advance, blending into the crowd of more than 30,000 participants.
Event organizers later confirmed that Suga completed the race in 1:04:43, averaging an 8:41 mile pace.
“We didn’t know ahead of time that he planned to participate,” Bay to Breakers vice president of partnerships Phyllis Blanchard told ABC7. “If he had [informed us], we would have given him VIP treatment. He just wanted to fit into the crowd.”
Photos and videos of Suga at the race later spread online, with fans surprised to learn the global K-pop star had been running alongside regular participants just hours before BTS’ concert in California.
BTS member Suga quietly ran in San Francisco's Bay to Breakers race on Sunday, blending into the 30,000‑person crowd before performing at Stanford Stadium. For the full story click the link below https://t.co/E9iJM2kEK1 pic.twitter.com/5KdiMkiGIH
— ABC7 News (@abc7newsbayarea) May 21, 2026
One runner interviewed by ABC7 said he only realized afterward that he had competed near the singer during the race.
Suga’s marathon appearance came amid BTS’ ongoing “ARIRANG” world tour, the group’s first full-group global trek since 2022 following the members’ completion of South Korea’s mandatory military service. The tour supports BTS’ latest album, which was released in March.
The group recently completed a three-night sold-out run at Stanford Stadium in California, where tens of thousands of fans gathered for the concerts.
BTS is scheduled to continue the “ARIRANG” tour with upcoming stops in Las Vegas and other cities across North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America.
The K-pop supergroup is set to bring their global shows in the Philippines on March 13 and 14, 2027, at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bulacan. /ra
