Abstract
Running events can contribute to destination development, but participation in a running event does not by itself establish tourism status. This study examines the relationships among motivation, destination image, satisfaction, and loyalty toward running tourism in Bali and then links the behavioral results to strategic development priorities. The quantitative analysis used 280 adult running-event participants. The survey documented participants' reported region of origin but, as currently reported, did not establish usual environment, overnight stay, or primary trip purpose; the empirical findings are therefore interpreted at the participant level rather than as estimates for a strictly defined tourist population. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) showed that destination image strongly influenced satisfaction (β = 0.745, p < 0.001), satisfaction influenced loyalty (β = 0.600, p < 0.001), and motivation directly influenced loyalty (β = 0.301, p < 0.001) but did not significantly influence satisfaction (β = 0.113, p = 0.095). Satisfaction mediated the destination image-loyalty relationship but not the motivation-loyalty relationship. Importance-performance map analysis (IPMA), the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), and focus group discussion (FGD) were used as a strategic translation layer to identify development priorities. Because the Fornell-Larcker assessment indicates potential overlap among several constructs, the structural and mediation results should be interpreted cautiously until HTMT, item-loading, and collinearity diagnostics are confirmed. Sustainability and collaborative governance are treated as strategic interpretation and recommendation domains rather than as latent outcomes tested in the PLS-SEM model.