Thread: Marathons

Thousand take over San Diego streets for annual Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon

Thousands of runners took off from Balboa Park on Sunday for day two of the annual Rock 'n' Roll Marathon. Participants took to the streets of San Diego, all headed for the finish line in downtown near Waterfront Park. June gloom or not, a little drizzle didn't keep anyone down.

"I think it's just a wonderful crowd, wonderful city and I love running here," said Dakota Bliler, who finished as the first woman for the full marathon. She came to San Diego from Scottsdale, Arizona to participate in the marathon. Last year she ran, she placed in second. This time around, she pushed herself to the limit.

"It's just a place where everybody wants people to succeed and obviously it's competitive but you know the people I'm running next to, I want them to run their absolute best and I know they want the best for me," said Bliler.

Whether participants came to compete, or just have fun, others came to add to their growing list of accomplishments.

"I'm 42. I'm going to continue to run and do this forever," said Tatiana Sell, who ran the half marathon. This is Sell's 55th half marathon in all different parts of the world.

"I just finished a series in April now in London. So I'm Brazilian, I'm among the 435 Brazilians in the world that has finished a series," said Sell.

More than 27,000 runners participated in the marathon and half marathon, and got to wind down at Waterfront Park near the finish line.

1,000-plus runners light up Koh Samui in annual Neon Run

Participants in colourful night run along 5.1-kilometre track help promote Samui as sport tourism destination

Organised by Central Pattana Plc, the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Koh Samui Municipality, and private partners, the event featured a night run along the 5.1-kilometre track around the island, with the start/finish point at Central Samui shopping mall.

Kicked off at 7pm, runners wearing attire decorated with backlights and glowing paint raced along Chaweng Road toward Chaweng Beach, passing local fishing communities that just started working that night.

Runners who crossed the finish line first in the male category were Duyakar BaharDuu from Myanmar, followed by Spain’s Eneko Anibarro and Russia’s Pavel Kuleshov.

In the female category, Olena Nikitas from Ukraine took the gold medal, while Russia’s Ekaterina Baranova took the silver and England’s Michelle Ward took the bronze.

Also joining the event were Thai celebrities, including Prim Korawan of The Face Thailand, Miss Universe Thailand 2021 second runner-up Nantiya Suwansawaeng, and DJ Dolla.

Samui is Thailand’s second-largest island after Phuket. Located off the east coast of Surat Thani province, this 236-square-kilometre island was named the seventh-best island in the world and came in second in Asia in Travel+Leisure magazine’s 2021 survey.

B.A.A. announces registration dates for 2025's 129th Boston Marathon

The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) announced Monday that registration for the 129th Boston Marathon® presented by Bank of America, will take place over five days, September 9–13, 2024, within Home | Boston Athletic Association.

The field size for the 129th Boston Marathon, to be run on Monday, April 21, 2025, will be 30,000 participants.

“While race day may still be ten months away, we’re eager to welcome runners from across the nation and around the world for the 129th running of the Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America,” said Jack Fleming, President and CEO of the B.A.A. “History was made at the 2024 race on Patriots’ Day, with a course record set and groundbreaking fundraising totals achieved. We’ll look to build upon these milestones in April, 2025, and celebrate the newest group of Boston Marathoners from Hopkinton to Boston. September’s registration is the first step towards reaching the starting line.”

Qualifier registration will open on Monday, September 9 at 10:00 a.m. ET and will close on Friday, September 13, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. ET. Any athlete who has achieved a currently valid Boston Marathon qualifying time may submit a registration application during Registration Week, September 9-13.

Registration will be held within the B.A.A.’s online platform Athletes' Village. Registration is not on a first-come, first-served basis, and applications will be accepted until 5:00 p.m. ET on Friday, September 13. The 2025 Boston Marathon qualifying window began on September 1, 2023, and will close at 5:00 p.m. ET on Friday, September 13. If space is still available after the conclusion of Registration Week, registration will re-open on Monday, September 16.

Qualifying standards for the 129th Boston Marathon can be found here; qualifying standards across all divisions will remain the same as they were for the 2024 Boston Marathon. Achieving one’s qualifying standard does not guarantee acceptance into the Boston Marathon. Those who are fastest among the pool of applicants in their age and gender group will be accepted if applications exceed capacity.

Athletes who have currently active finisher streaks of 10 or more Boston Marathons will have an opportunity to register early between August 26 and September 30, 2024. More details will be sent to these athletes over the summer months.

The qualifying window for the 130th Boston Marathon, scheduled to take place on April 20, 2026, will begin on September 1, 2024. Registration details for that race will be announced following the 2025 Boston Marathon.

Mother, son finish top 20 at Mickelson Trail half marathon

Thousands of runners were on the Mickelson Trail Sunday morning participating in this year’s marathon, half-marathon and marathon relay, with racers finishing through the heart of historic Deadwood.

Two weeks ago, 16-year-old Sully Wilson and his mother Annmarie, had nothing booked on their calendars for the first weekend of June.

“Chose to run this race because my son wanted to do it,” Annmarie Wilson said. “We kind of had a last minute sign up. We signed up a week ago.”

Both of the mother and son are runners in their respective rights, but never ran a race together until Sunday’s half-marathon.

“Mom and dad ran, and I just ran in middle school and then got a little better, got into high school and then I thought a half (marathon) would be fun,” Sully said.

“I can’t say that we’ve really run together, like a race before,” Annmarie continued. “This was the first time. It was a really fun weekend with him.”

Sully is still a “rookie runner” compared to his mom who has ran nearly 20 full marathons in the last 20 years. This race on the Mickelson Trail is different than others. Runners face various obstacles given the difference in terrain versus your typical “city” run.

“It’s the second farthest I’ve ever ran, so I didn’t really know what I was going to run going into it,” Sully explained.

“(I) was a little bit worried because of the gravel,” Annmarie said of the conditions. “Your footing is just a little bit different. You kind of have to be careful on that, but it’s so much more beautiful, for sure.”

Where the half-marathon runners start, near Dumont, to where they finish in downtown Deadwood, participants experience the full beauty of the Mount Rushmore State. It’s night-and-day to the Wilson’s hometown of Lingle, Wyoming.

“The trail was super nice, and it was pretty and it’s not like you’re in the middle of nowhere like at my house,” Sully said.

Sunday was a great day for the Wilson family. Annmarie tallied a personal best, taking 1st place overall in the female division of the half-marathon. Sully on the other hand placed 6th overall.

“It feels good cause everybody’s trying to make everybody better,” Sully said. “So, like they’re helping you and there’s people on the course to run with and they’re helping me, so it’s nice.”

To learn more about Deadwood’s Mickelson Trail Marathon, click here.

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Boston Athletic Association announces new Boston Marathon logo

The iconic Boston Marathon unicorn is getting a redesign.

The Boston Athletic Association, the organization behind the Boston Marathon, unveiled a new logo for the race Wednesday in honor of Global Running Day. The updated logo now features the unicorn facing forward as a symbol of the organization looking toward the future, BAA said in a statement.

“As we continue to evolve as an organization, the new emblem symbolizes this forward movement with our partners and reinforces our dedication to our mission of promoting healthy lifestyles for generations to come,” Jack Fleming, BAA president and CEO said in the statement.

New features of the logo include the unicorn’s horn pointing northeast to represent the route of the marathon and 13 spikes on its mane, symbolizing each decade the BAA has been in operation. Other features represent determination, athleticism, and crossing the finish line.

The forward-facing logo represents the BAA moving forward with its philanthropic efforts and its commitment to supporting the future of running, the statement reads. Marathon runners, and nonprofit organizations raised nearly $72 million for charitable causes this year through fundraising and donations, the BAA reported May 29.

“We are fortunate to be able to provide a platform for so many incredible participants and non-profit organizations to raise life-changing funds for the community every year,” Fleming said in the statement. “The power of our collective work is how we can maximize our reach in the years ahead.”

Launch of new Boston Marathon logo on Global Running Day symbolizes moving forward together | Boston Athletic Association

Ottawa Marathoner Rachel Hannah Runs Through Confetti, Smoke As Fans Run Onto The Course

Marathoner reacts after men release confetti, pink smoke around her during final mile

Rachel Hannah, 37, is a seasoned marathon runner with an impressive track record. But her latest race during an Ottawa marathon is one she won’t soon forget.

The runner from Ontario, who has pounded pavements from London to Tokyo, ran the Tartan Ottawa International Marathon on May 25 and became the first Canadian woman and third overall female to cross the finish line with a time of 2 : 48 : 03. Still, the race was more of an effort than anticipated when she crossed paths with a throng of enthusiastic bystanders.

As Hannah pushed through the final stretch with just over a kilometer to go, her focus was trained on the finish line. It was then that spectators stepped onto the course and began to cheer her on with colorful smoke bombs and confetti.

The full moment can be seen in the marathon’s video coverage at the three-hour 14-minute mark.

Hannah can be seen shrouded in a haze of hot pink smoke being spread by two men who flank her sides. At one point, a man kneels before her and sets off a stream of confetti. The video shows Hannah moving her hands to clear the smoke, a movement she tells TODAY.com she barely remembers in the blur of the last leg.

"I‘m not sure that’s exactly what you want happening right now," a sportscaster can be heard saying in one clip shared by TikTok user @resiliencyinrunning.

“No, no, no, no,“ another agrees.

In the post’s comments section and in another shared on Instagram, users speculated that sabotage was involved.

Speaking to TODAY.com, Hannah stresses that it was simply a result of overenthusiasm and the resources accessible in smaller marathon events.

"It looks worse than how I remembered, but I really just think they got excited because they’re a group that cheers on people, and they come to a lot of races. They support the running community," she explains.

“They got too close, and I think they just misjudged the space. I didn’t see it as a way that they were trying to stop me on the course. They were trying to celebrate.”

According to Hannah, the men in the video caught wind of suspicions about their behavior and called her immediately.

Marathon officials retool air quality considerations

After close-call with wildfire smoke in 2023, Grandma's officials retool race day air quality considerations

Wildfire smoke from Canada blanketed the Northland just three days before last year’s Grandma’s Marathon.

While it cleared by race day, it was a wake-up call for organizers.

“It wasn’t something that was really on our list of concerns, honestly,” Grandma’s Marathon spokesperson Zach Schneider said. “So now it is, obviously. It’s something that after seeing what almost happened to us last year, and then knowing that the wildfires might be an issue to this area again this year, it’s something that we’re going to more closely pay attention to.”

As officials retooled the event’s emergency operations plan, Dr. Kathryn McLellan, an orthopedic and sports medicine physician at Essentia Health and Grandma’s medical director, said she pushed to make sure air quality was part of the plan ahead of this year’s June 22 race.

Last year, McLellan said, “We were kind of caught on the back foot on that one.”

The cancellation of the Twin Cities Marathon last fall because of heat also spurred discussions.

“We realized we need to revisit our process of how we are going to make those types of decisions,” said Schneider, adding that it was a look at the race’s emergency operations plan as a whole, not just air quality and heat.

Grandma’s Marathon executive director Shane Bauer will make the final decision on whether to modify or cancel races, but only after consulting with McLellan, the medical team and the board of directors. Those conversations will be guided by the EPA’s Air Quality Index. The AQI shows air pollution levels and health concerns on a 0-500 scale — the higher the number, the more pollution and health effects. Officials will also rely on data from the National Weather Service in Duluth and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, both of which monitor and forecast air quality and where wildfire smoke travels.

McLellan said officials “will be strongly considering cancellation” if AQI exceeds 200, a level the EPA considers “very unhealthy.”

An AQI above 150, considered “unhealthy” by the EPA, would prompt an advisory group discussion on “the risk to the runners and how long the risk would last, if we could make adjustments to the race or if we would need to do an outright cancellation,” McLellan said.

If the AQI exceeds 100, which the EPA considers “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” race officials would alert runners of “an increased risk of health effects, especially people with respiratory illnesses, and advise that if they are at higher risk, that they consider not running, but we would probably continue the race at that point.”

Anything under 100 on the AQI scale is considered in the ambient range with 51-100 posing a ”moderate” level of concern and anything with an AQI under 50 is “good,” according to the EPA.

Although a wet spring has eliminated drought in Minnesota , significantly reducing the risk of local wildfires, large fires continue to burn in Canada. Smoke from British Columbia already prompted an air quality alert for all of Minnesota last month. State officials last month also warned that while this year won't be as bad as last year’s record-setting 52 days of air quality alerts (16 due to wildfire smoke), residents should still expect more air quality alerts than normal. While wildfire may be less of a factor, slightly above-normal temperatures are expected to trap gases, like those in vehicle exhaust, closer to earth, officials said.

'Little People, Big World' Fans Declare Tori Roloff 'Superwoman' After Finishing Long-Distance Race

Tori Roloff impressed fans as she shared some of the details of the major accomplishment she tackled over the weekend.

As the Little People, Big World star indicated in an Instagram post last week, she has been training for a big running event. “One of the biggest challenges I face being a runner: Running,” the mother of three joked while sharing a video of herself logging miles on Wed., June 5.

A subsequent Instagram video shared on Sat., June 8 revealed the race for which the former TLC star had trained. While posing in front of a Timberline Marathon banner, Tori smiled at the camera as her husband, Zach Roloff, stood beside her. Their three children— Jackson, 7, Lilah, 4, and Josiah, 2—posed in front of them.

Tori, who announced earlier this year that she and Zach were leaving the popular reality TV series after 25 seasons, later revealed in her video that she had elected to run the race's half marathon distance in Oregon’s Mt. Hood National Forest. The trail course encircled Timothy Lake and was an estimated 14.4 miles long, or about 1.3 miles longer than the traditional half marathon distance, according to the race website.

After posing with friends and family before the race, Tori’s video showed clips of her ticking off the miles one by one as she raced toward the finish line, which the video later showed her crossing. Once she had finished running, Tori ended her video with a snapshot showing her proudly holding up her half marathon finisher’s medal.

“So that was fun… but no need to do it again!,” her Instagram post said. She thanked the friends and mentors who helped her prepare for the big day before penning a special message for her husband.

“Thank you @zroloff07 for your ultimate support. For letting me train and take time away from our family to be able to achieve something like this!! You are my biggest fan and I love you so much,” she wrote.

Several fans applauded Tori on Instagram for tackling the challenge.

Calli Hauger-Thackery leads GB to half marathon team gold

Calli Hauger-Thackery won individual half-marathon bronze and led Great Britain to team gold on the third morning of the European Athletics Championships in Rome.

Hauger-Thackery, 31, finished in one hour eight minutes 58 seconds, with Norway's Karoline Bjerkeli Grovdal winning gold and Romania's Joan Chelimo Melly silver.

Abbie Donnelly was sixth, Clara Evans ninth and Lauren McNeil 17th as GB clinched team gold - with a combined time of 3 : 29 : 01 from their first three finishers.

"You work so hard that naturally as an athlete you want more but I am so happy to win the individual bronze and be part of an amazing gold medal-winning team," said Hauger-Thackery.

"It shows a lot about where British women's running is at the moment - I'm very proud of us all.

"Doing this half marathon two months out from the Olympic marathon is great preparation for me. I'll head back out to St Moritz to get that final preparation in before the big one in Paris."

The success lifted Great Britain to fourth in the medal table., external

There are seven more medal events to come later on Sunday, culminating in the women's 100m final at 21 : 53 BST - with GB's Dina Asher-Smith and Amy Hunt aiming to qualify from their semi-finals from 20 : 13.

Veteran Sally Orange completes Everest marathon dressed as lemon

An army veteran has successfully completed the world's highest marathon dressed as a lemon.

Sally Orange, 50, from Salisbury, said it was her 84th marathon and she wanted to take the mental health message to the top of the world.

Ms Orange described the Everest Marathon, which starts at the mountain's base camp at 5,401metres (17,721 feet) high, as "epic, brutal, and stunning".

"I want to break the stigma associated with poor mental health and just normalise the conversation," she said.

In 2023, Ms Orange ran seven marathons on seven continents in seven days, all while dressed as various fruits.

She claims to be the only person in the world who has ran a marathon on every continent dressed as a different piece of fruit.

The costumes make people smile and encouraged them to ask why she was running, she said.

"I chose to be a lemon for this marathon to be 'ice in a slice,'" she added.

She supported the Samaritans and the Duke of Edinburgh Awards scheme in the marathon.

For more than 25 years, she has been tackling depression and chronic anxiety.

"It's all very personal, the whole mental health campaigning," she said.

She believes physical activity can help mental wellbeing regardless of age, gender, or background.

"Just being outside can be of benefit to us all," she said.

She has won a gold Duke of Edinburgh award and a BBC Make a Difference award.

Runner dies during Southend Half Marathon

A runner taking part in a half-marathon for charity has collapsed and died during the race.

He had been taking part in the annual Southend Half Marathon in Shoeburyness, Essex.

The East of England Ambulance Service Trust (EEAST) confirmed it was called out to the event just before 11:00 BST after receiving reports of a medical emergency on Mess Road.

“Two ambulances, an ambulance officer vehicle, a rapid response vehicle and the Essex and Herts Air Ambulance were sent to the scene," it said.

"Sadly, despite the best efforts of medical crews, an adult man was pronounced dead at the scene.”

The race, now in its 28th year, is held to raise money for the Havens Hospices charity.

In a statement, the charity said the deceased man's family had been informed.

"It is with immense sadness that we can confirm a runner who took part in the Southend Half Marathon has died," it said.

"The male runner collapsed on the route and treatment was given immediately.

"Our thoughts and sincere condolences are with his family and friends at this incredibly sad time.

"We know this is very upsetting news for the whole running community and our thoughts are with all those affected."

Marathon winner loses title after taking water from dad, California reports say

A marathon winner lost his first-place title after accepting water from his father along the race route, California reports say.

Esteban Prado, of Fountain Valley, was disqualified from the Hoag OC Marathon after he was seen drinking water provided by a cyclist along the race route, Gary Kutschar, the race’s director, told McClatchy News in a May 7 phone interview.

Kutschar said the cyclist was also relaying information about the race and its competitors to Prado during the Sunday, May 5, race.

“I told him (over the phone), ‘Esteban, I hate to say this, but … that’s an illegal assistance,’” Kutschar said. “It’s an infraction that can’t be overlooked.”

Both the provision of water and information violate Rule 144 of the USA Track & Field competition rules, as they are considered “assistance,” according to Kutschar.

Runners are only allowed to take water from hydration stations along the route, the rule states. Additionally, the “conveying of advice, information or direct help to a competitor by any means, including a technical device” is prohibited.

Kutschar said video from the race’s cyclist course marshals confirms the violations.

New course record set on marathon’s 25th anniversary

It just seemed both inevitable and fitting that, if a new course record was ever going to be set for the Hatfield McCoy Marathon, it would come during a year with a special significance attached to it.

Considering the 2024 Hatfield McCoy Marathon held Saturday, June 8, marked the 25th running of the popular and world-recognized long-distance racing event, this particular second Saturday in June seemed as good a candidate as any for the old record to be eclipsed and supplanted by a new one.

And it was eclipsed and supplanted — big time. Not only did Charleston native Hector Falcon break the old course record of 2:41:03 set in 2006 by North Carolinan Mike Aldrink, he essentially pulverized it by shaving off nearly eight minutes with a time of 2 : 33 : 36.

When running a 26.2-mile course that entails nearly as much physically challenging hilly terrain as it does level and less grueling topography — elevated terrain that includes a very formidable Hardy/Blackberry Mountain six miles from the race’s start in South Williamson — everyone from race officials to the ordinary onlooker considered Falcon’s effort to be nothing less than extraordinary.

What’s more, in the world of running where a mere few seconds can mean the difference between winning or losing even a long-distance race, both aficionados and spectators alike believe this nearly eight-minute spread could represent an eternal gap that’s never going to be closed, let alone bested.

“It was tough, it really was,” Falcon said shortly after crossing the finish line in Williamson. “The scenery was beautiful, but the course is a very difficult one for sure. I’m just really happy I was able to run it in the time I did.”

Race Director Alexis Batausa was one of those who expressed astonishment over the 2023 Marshall University Marathon winner’s record-breaking achievement on Saturday.

The 25th annual Hatfield McCoy Marathon saw a new course record set on Saturday, June 8, when Charleston native Hector Falcon (seen here crossing the finish line) ran the 26.2-mile course in a time of 2 : 33 : 36. The old course record of 2: 41 : 03 — set by Durham, North Carolina, native Mike Aldrink in 2006 — had not been seriously challenged in 18 years.

“Basically he just breezed through it, which is truly remarkable,” Batausa said following Falcon’s finish. “He pretty much stayed at a six-minute pace over the entire course, and that’s simply amazing considering the terrain and hot and humid temperatures that he and all the other runners are always dealing with.”

Nearly 700 runners registered either for this year’s full marathon, its two half-marathons or its 5K, which Batausa said was a substantial increase over the 350/400 post COVID runners having signed up for one or more of the events during the past four years.

Finishing first in the women’s division and 12th overall was Alison Huppert, from Waukesha, Wisconsin, who finished with a time of 3 : 40 : 11.

Record-breaker Gerda Steyn reveals ASTONISHING Comrades Marathon masterplan

Sunday’s record-breaking Comrades Marathon winner Gerda Steyn has revealed her pre-race pacing plan – and it is simply astonishing to see how she was then able to follow it to virtually the second.

She had target times and paces for 12 different points of the 86.5km race – and she nailed virtually every one, including the all-important finish time of five hours and 49 minutes.

To put that last one into some sort of context, only one woman – Steyn herself – had previously dipped under six hours for the ‘up’ version of the race from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, with the existing record of 5 . 58 . 53 from back in 2019.

So aiming for 5 : 49 this time was a huge call, but one the 34-year-old delivered on in style as she bossed the ‘Ultimate Human Race’ from the outset.

In front of hundreds of thousands of fans she looked comfortable throughout and finished 15 minutes clear of her nearest rival.

It was a third title for Steyn, who also owns the women’s course record for the ‘down’ run, when the race is held in the opposite direction, which she set last year.

The victory added to an already memorable 2024 as earlier this year she claimed a fifth win and a new course record at the Two Oceans Marathon.

And the big focus now for Steyn is the marathon at the Paris Olympics.

Rock ‘n’ Roll releases courses for 2024 San Antonio marathon, half-marathon, 10K and 5K

SAN ANTONIO – The Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series has released the routes for some of the most popular races of the year in San Antonio.

Rock ‘n’ Roll San Antonio begins with a 5K and 10K on Saturday, Dec. 7, and a half-marathon and marathon on Sunday, Dec. 8.

Organizers announced the routes on Wednesday in an email to subscribers.

“The 2024 courses have something for everyone to revel in as you walk or run through the Alamo City,” the email read.

If you participated in the 2023 events, you’ll notice that the courses are similar for this year.

Contrary to recent years, the 5K and 10K will not start near Sunset Station. Instead, the courses start on downtown’s west end, at West Houston Street and North Santa Rosa Street.

Both routes head east along Houston, then north along IH-37, and then northwest on Jones Avenue. The 5K route then travels back to Travis Park, while the 10K route goes north of downtown to San Antonio College and then to Travis Park.

The finish line for both races is at Travis Park.

2024 Comrades Marathon Results: Gerda Steyn Sets Course Record; Piet Wiersma Wins Men’s Race

At 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 9, in the raucous darkness of Durban, South Africa, more than 20,000 runners, powered by nerves, adrenaline, and the “Chariots of Fire” theme song, crossed the start line of the 2024 Comrades Marathon to take part in the oldest and largest ultramarathon in the world: nearly 86 kilometers of road running throughout the hills of South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province. It was the 97th running of the event, which has only missed four editions since World War I veteran Vic Clapham started it in 1921 to commemorate the lives of South African soldiers.

Two of the runners — Gerda Steyn, of South Africa but who lives in the United Arab Emirates, on the women’s side and Piet Wiersma of The Netherlands on the men’s — cemented their names in race lore by taking home wins, and sizable paydays, in their respective races. The race has a massive prize purse, with a total 4,092,000 Rand ($217,000) on the line.

Steyn, the defending champion, broke her own course record for the Up run direction by more than nine minutes for her third win at Comrades. She also holds the women’s course record for the Down run when the race is held in the opposite direction, which she set in 2023.

Wiersma, meanwhile, backed up his impressive Comrades debut last year — where he finished second only three seconds behind the winner — with his first win at the race.

The Comrades Marathon famously alternates the direction each year, and this year’s race, which was run in relatively ideal conditions with temperatures ranging from the mid-50s to low-70s Fahrenheit, was the 49th Up race, meaning runners began in the lower-altitude Durban and ended in the higher-altitude Pietermaritzburg. The race featured around 1,750 meters of elevation gain, with most of it during the first half of the race, when the course runs through three of its “Big Five” hills. The Up run, therefore, demands a smart, measured racing strategy.

For the race’s first half, Piet Wiersma (The Netherlands) seemed content to stay conservative and save his energy for the back half. A two-man pack of Jobo Khatoane (Lesotho), looking for his first Comrades finish, and Aleksei Beresnev (Russia), back for a second time after debuting inside the top 10 last year, were within a minute of each other at Drummond, around the halfway mark, with the next runner more than five minutes back and Wiersma sitting in 10th, almost nine-and-a-half minutes off the lead.

But then Wiersma dropped the hammer, increasing his pace to 3:37 per kilometer from 3:58 per kilometer to jump into the top five by the Cato Ridge checkpoint at 56.6 kilometers into the race. That seemingly set the tone for big moves for the race’s second half, where Beresnev was still holding the lead and followed by Degefa Yohannese Lafebo (Ethiopia). With this race, Lafebo was moving up in distance following two top-10 finishes at the Two Oceans Marathon, a 50k race.

South Africans Tete Dijana, the two-time defending champion, and Dan Moselakwe, a prior Comrades podium finisher, sat in third and fourth, respectively.

Wiersma continued to run strong and moved into the lead by Umlaas Road, 67.5k, passing Lafebo, and by Mkondeni at 79.1k, he had increased to nearly a minute. Behind him, Beresnev dropped off the pace, while Dijana couldn’t hang on, either. The pair would finish, but outside the top 10 this year.

Moselakwe took advantage of fading runners to move himself into second. Joseph Manyedi (South Africa), meanwhile, methodically moved his way up to finish in fourth, his eighth and best Comrades finish, while Andrew Davies (U.K.) jumped from 12th to fifth over the course of the second half of the race. This was Davies’ first Comrades finish.

At the finish line, Wiersma would stay clear of Moselakwe by 45 seconds and third-place finisher Lafebo by nearly three minutes.

Top wheelchair racers withdraw from 2024 Grandma's Marathon

The wet weather forecast for the 48th GrandmaÂ’s Marathon on Saturday has prompted the top contenders in the wheelchair division to pull out of the 2024 race.

Five-time GrandmaÂ’s Marathon champion Aaron Pike of the United States will not race on Saturday down Minnesota's North Shore from Two Harbors to Duluth, and neither will four-time champion Susannah Scaroni of the U.S.

Defending women's champion Jenna Fesemyer has also pulled out of this yearÂ’s race.

The National Weather Service in Duluth, as of Friday morning, is predicting showers “likely” and “possibly” thunderstorms on Saturday prior to 1 p.m. with high temperatures near 61 degrees. There will be a northeast wind around 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph.

Pike was signed up in pursuit of his third-consecutive Grandma’s Marathon title in 2024 — he previously won three straight between 2017 and 2019 — beat his own course record holder in 2022 with a time of 1 : 20 : 02.

Iconic Marathon Moves Back to Kona: 27th Annual UCC Coffee Kona Marathon

The 27th Annual UCC Coffee Kona Marathon is moving back to Kona after staging the race on the Kohala Coast for the last few years. The race will take place on Saturday, June 21, 2025 with a new resort partner—Royal Kona Resort and Spa.

“It’s safe to say that over the past 26 years the Kona Marathon has had it’s share of challenges—dealing with COVID, location and course changes, volcanic eruptions, and even tropical storms,” said Kona Marathon Race Director Brent Imonen. “The long-term effects of the COVID layoff gave us time to rethink our race. It’s time for a new beginning and we’re excited to go back to our Kona roots.”

The 2025 Kona Marathon races will include the marathon (26.2 miles), Kona Half Marathon (13.1 miles), Kona Quarter Marathon (6.55 miles), and Kona 5K (3.1 miles) race. A Health & Fitness Fair and keiki events are planned leading up to the marathon.

Mid-Major marathons create new tier of competitive races.

If You’re Looking for a Fall Marathon, There’s a Key Piece of Intel You Should Know

The harder it is to get into the most popular marathons, the more appeal there is in smaller races.

Every June, 50,000 people pour into … Duluth, Minnesota? You read that right: Duluth—which has a population of roughly 86,000—is now a major running destination thanks to Grandma’s Marathon, which typically takes place the third weekend of June. “It’s one of the largest single-day events here every year, and it probably feels bigger than it is because of the size of the community—it amplifies the excitement in a lot of ways,” says race director Greg Haapala.

Boutique races like Grandma’s Marathon may be lesser known on a global stage, but they’re a clear example of running’s surging popularity—and how word of mouth, courtesy of previous participants, can bring new runners to the event, says Haapala. Grandma’s, which was founded in 1977, has seen three straight years of sellouts since the COVID-19 pandemic (previously, they had only sold out in the 40th anniversary year). Each year, the marathon, which opens registration in the fall, has reached its capacity of around 9,000 runners faster than the last, from June in 2022 to March in 2023 to January in 2024.

Industry estimates suggest that there are approximately 50 million runners in America right now, and interest in racing is growing, too: Five percent of runners on Strava ran a 26.2-mile race in 2023, up 20 percent from the previous year, according to the fitness app’s annual Year in Sport report. And average race registrations in 2023 were 5.8 percent higher compared to 2022, internal data from RunSignup indicates.

Demand is outpacing capacity for the six largest, most prestigious, and most well-known marathons in the world, aka the Abbott World Marathon Majors, an international circuit that includes Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, New York, and Tokyo. Five of those six races are lottery-based, and the London Marathon just set a new world record with 840,318 people applying to run in 2025. The Boston Marathon is the only one that requires runners to meet time standards (unless they run for a charity), and a surge in qualifiers meant runners had to run 5:29 faster than the qualifying time for their age and gender to gain entry into the 2024 race.

More applicants mean that more runners are getting repeatedly shut out of the World Marathon Majors. But events like Grandma’s Marathon, the Los Angeles Marathon, Twin Cities Marathon, Houston Marathon, Eugene Marathon, Philadelphia Marathon, Indianapolis Monumental Marathon, and more are just as well-organized as the Majors, but are more accessible and affordable (a bib for New York costs up to $315, while Philadelphia registration costs $120—and that doesn’t include travel costs).

“I look at these races as offering a boutique marathon experience,” says Phil Dumontet, CEO of endurance-event production company Brooksee and founder of Boulderthon. Dumontet oversees 10 races, including the Mesa Marathon, Portland Marathon, and Las Vegas Marathon, which altogether draw about 60,000 participants per year. “They have the same big-city amenities that you’d expect from a large race, but shrunk down to a more personalized level that brings in the personality of the local community in a way that’s harder to replicate on a massive scale.”

The Houston Marathon, held every January, has seen its out-of-town numbers grow since the pandemic, says race director Carly Caulfield. “You can literally fly into one of our two airports, take an Uber into downtown, and you never have to worry about transportation again,” she says. “The Expo, the start and finish line, everything is right there—all you have to do is think about your race.”

It’s a stark contrast to marathon weekend in Boston, where crowds inundate the airport and streets, runners must take an early-morning shuttle to the start in Hopkinton, and spectators can barely navigate the course via public transportation.

“Because we’re smaller, we can be a little more flexible, a little more responsive and nimble,” adds Caulfield. Race organizers, for example, extensively analyze race data each year to minimize field density as much as possible so runners don’t feel crowded together. The flat course was made for fast times; in 2022, Keira D’Amato broke the women’s American record—which had stood since 2006—there. (A half-marathon is run simultaneously, and Weini Kelati set the American record for that distance in Houston in 2024.)

Compare that to the New York Marathon, where at mile eight, runners funnel from the wide expanse of Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn’s main artery, to the narrower, brownstone- and tree-lined Lafayette Avenue. If you’re far enough back in the field, it’s a guaranteed, stop-you-in-your-tracks bottleneck—one that can tack precious time onto your race.

Add to that the frustration of getting into a massive race like New York—for 2024, the race, organized by the New York Road Runners, received almost 165,000 applications, and announced that a mere 4 percent were accepted—and it makes sense that runners are looking elsewhere.

Smaller races are leveraging the moment. The Detroit Free Press Marathon, the only race in the world to cross two international borders, recently announced that it would be adding an elite field. Nearly 24,000 people registered to take part in the 2023 race, and this year is on track to be the event’s biggest year yet, says Aaron Velthoven, the vice president and race director. But the addition of an elite field—including pro runners—is part of a long-term plan to expand the race’s size and influence.

“In any sport, folks look to the top for inspiration, and we want to showcase what an elite marathoner can do on this course here,” says Velthoven. “And our goal is that word of mouth goes out through the industry and that we can continue to grow as a destination for runners.”

Destination is just as much a draw for mid-Majors as it is for the Majors; runners come for the race, but stay for the location. While the events themselves may be smaller, they’re hosted in cities where runners can hang out, sightsee, and explore local attractions. For some runners, the Majors become a sort of bucket-list travel experience, while other races allow them to focus on the race itself—with less stress surrounding the event and fewer people on the course, more variables remain in a runner’s control.

Whatever a runner’s intention in signing up may be, a mid-Major must have four foundational elements to create a great experience, says Dumontet, who has seen Boulderthon registration double year over year since he founded it in 2021; this year’s race is on track to hit over 10,000 participants. “Safety is the starting point,” he explains. “Start time reflects the organization leading up to the race and provides a great first impression; support—aid stations, volunteers, cheer groups, entertainment—makes an event more fun; and scoring, especially live tracking, is key because more spectators are coming out to support friends and family.”

The races that nail those four elements stand to benefit the most as runners look beyond World Marathon Majors race weekends. That’s not to say runners shouldn’t keep those six races on their bucket list, but until the entry odds are in their favor, there are plenty of other cities that offer equally iconic events with unique courses, epic crowd support, and the opportunity to run their best race.

excellent, does that complete the suit of threads update? i noticed you started before i went to bed 9 hours ago

no not yet

Jury awards more than $13 million to ultramarathon athlete injured in fall on a Seattle sidewalk

A jury awarded $13.1 million to an ultramarathon athlete who was severely injured when she fell on a Seattle sidewalk in 2021.

The award by a King County jury found that the city of Seattle and the owners of an apartment building are responsible for the amount, the Seattle Times reported.

Lesley Mettler Auld, 53, said in a news release issued by her attorneys on Friday that she will never run again and struggles to walk after the fall on a sidewalk in Seattle’s Queen Anne neighborhood.

“Today, fully 34 months since the fall, I still have to pull myself up the stairs in my house on my hands and knees,” she said.

The professional fitness coach has completed numerous ultramarathons, which are races longer than the standard marathon distance of 26.2 miles (42.2 kilometers), her lawyers said.

She fell on a stretch of sidewalk “perennially covered in water and algae”, according to her lawsuit. Other residents testified in court they had also fallen there.

Mettler Auld severely damaged her quadriceps and required multiple surgeries.

A spokesperson for the Seattle city attorney’s office declined to comment.