Richmond Marathon

The Anthem Richmond Marathon is an annual marathon foot-race held in Richmond, Virginia, USA. It was established in 1978 and has been run every year since. It was known as the Richmond Newspapers Marathon until 1997 and then as SunTrust Richmond Marathon until 2011. Sports Backers produces the event and serves as the non-profit beneficiary of the event. The event supports efforts to make running accessible to Richmond area youth through the Kids Run RVA program.

The marathon commences at 6th & Broad Streets and concludes at 5th and Tredegar streets on Richmond's historic riverfront. A party on the riverfront highlights the finish festival area. Runners have seven hours in which to complete the marathon.

History

The inaugural marathon in 1978 saw 1,183 take part in the main event with an additional 900 in the 8 km run and 639 in the half marathon. David Ruggles was the first winner of the marathon with a time of 2:28:49. Bobbie Allen was the first female winner with a time of 3:15:40.

The marathon suffered a decline in participation during the late 1980s and early 1990s, with just 434 taking part in 1992. In 1998 the half marathon was dropped, and participation in the main event tripled. Today the Half Marathon has returned at total participation in the 8k, half marathon and marathon reached 19,700 in 2013. The Anthem Richmond Marathon is now the 18th largest marathon in the United States.[1]

The current course record is held by Kenya's Kennedy Kemei, who ran 2:13:45 in 2011. The female record is held by Russia's Irina Suvorova who ran 2:31:25 in 2000.

2011 Event

RICHMOND, VA – With a time of 2:13:45, Kenya’s Kennedy Kemei, 33, set a new course record today in the 2011 SunTrust Richmond Marathon. The previous course record was 2:14:32, set by Andrei Gordeev in 2005. Kemei walked away with a total of $5,500 in prize money - $2,500 for the first place finish, an additional $2,500 for setting a new course record, and a bonus of $500 for finishing under two hours and twenty minutes. Mekides Bekele, a 25-year-old Ethiopian, was the first female to cross the finish line, clocking in at 2:47:50.

References

  1. ↑ "Running USA Statistics". http://www.runningusa.org/largest-races''.

External links