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{{Infobox Athleticrace
{{Infobox Athleticrace
| bgcolour = red
| bgcolour = red
| image = [[File:Grand_Rapids_Marathon_Logo.jpg|thumb|right|insert a caption here]]
| image = [[File:Grand_Rapids_Marathon_Logo.jpg|thumb|center]]
| imagesize = 200px
| imagesize = 200px
| caption = The Metro Health Grand Rapids Marathon Logo
| caption = The Metro Health Grand Rapids Marathon Logo

Revision as of 23:48, 25 June 2012

Grand Rapids Marathon
The Metro Health Grand Rapids Marathon Logo
DateOctober 21, 2012
LocationWestern Michigan, ending in Grand Rapids
Event typeRoad
DistanceMarathon
Established2004
Official sitegrandrapidsmarathon.com

The Metro Health/Grand Rapids Marathon is a 26.219-mile (42.195 km) race run every October in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA since 2004. It is a USATF certified course.[1] The Grand Rapids Marathon picked up Metro Health as a title sponsor in 2008. The full marathon gives runners a tour of downtown Grand Rapids and then heads out of the city and into the trails of Millennium Park. It is considered a flat, fast course and is a qualifying opportunity for the Boston Marathon.[1]

The race director is Don Kern.[2]

The marathon utilizes "celebrity" pace teams, based on the times of famous people who had run marathons. The current pace teams include Oprah (4:29), P. Diddy (4:14), Will Ferrell (3:56), George W. Bush (3:44), William Baldwin (3:24), and Pi (3:14).

Apart from the main event, there is also a kids marathon, 5K, 10K, half-marathon, marathon relay and fitness expo.

The course record of 2:26.46 was set by Ryan Greutman in 2008.

The 2011 overall winner was Justin Gillette (Goshen, Indiana) in a time of 2:27:44. The 2011 female winner was Dani Steinbacher (Ann Arbor, Michigan), who achieved a time of 2:58:12. Also in 2011, Jason Kleinjan (Chicago, Illinois) won the half-marathon for the second consecutive year, with a time of 1:12:51, and Julia Viel (Mentor, Ohio) was the female winner with 1:24:19.[3]

2012 is expected to be a 6,000-person event.

References

  1. ^ a b Kern, Don. "GRMarathonFAQ". Retrieved 19 June 2012.
  2. ^ Kern, Don. "GRMarathonCommittee". Retrieved 19 June 2012.
  3. ^ Kaminski, Steve (October 17, 2011). "Grand Rapids Marathon champion Justin Gillette not slowing down after 17th race in 2011". Grand Rapids Press. Retrieved 20 June 2012.