Grand Rapids Marathon
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The Metro Health/Grand Rapids Marathon is a 42.195-kilometre (26.219 mi) 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.[2]
The race director is Don Kern.[3]
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 2011 overall winner was Justin Gillette (Goshen, Indiana) in a time of 2:27:44.[4] The female winner was Dani Steinbacher (Ann Arbor, Michigan), who achieved a time of 2:58:12. [5]
2012 is expected to be a 6,000-person event.
- ^ Kern, Don. "GRMarathonFAQ". Retrieved 19 June 2012.
- ^ Kern, Don. "GRMarathonFAQ". Retrieved 19 June 2012.
- ^ Kern, Don. "GRMarathonCommittee". Retrieved 19 June 2012.
- ^ "Race Results". Active.Com. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
- ^ "RaceResultsWomen". Active.com. Retrieved 19 June 2012.