Disney World - The Online Guide

The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2003
(UK customers)

Walt Disney World Marathon

10th Annual Running Set for Jan. 12, 2003, at 6 a.m.

The Walt Disney World Marathon is celebrating a magical milestone on Jan. 12: its 10th year. And among the record field of 22,000 participants, a unique group of 149 runners will be celebrating a magical milestone as they make the 26.2-mile trek through the four Disney theme parks.

Dubbed the “Perfect 10 Club,” these 115 men and 34 women are competing in their 10th consecutive Disney Marathon. Race organizers will honor the runners -- representing 24 states and 19 Florida counties -- with a special edition race number and t-shirt, and through a series of race weekend special events.

“The enthusiasm exhibited by the Perfect 10 Club runners is a testament to the kind of exhilarating event that has been our goal the past 10 years,” said Reggie Williams, vice president of Disney Sports Attractions, who played 14 seasons in the National Football League. “We look forward to welcoming these runners -- and thousands of others -- back to Walt Disney World Resort in 2003 and providing an experience that is as fresh and exciting as the first Disney Marathon in 1994.”

Since its beginning on Jan. 14, 1994, the Disney Marathon has evolved into a world-renowned running and road-racing weekend that has attracted some 90,000 runners, walkers and wheelchair athletes from all 50 states and as far away as Osaka, Japan.

A record field of 16,000 registered marathoners is expected at the start line at 6 a.m. on race day, nearly double the 8,500 who participated in the inaugural event in 1994. The half marathon, which was created in 1998, will also include a record field of 6,000 on the morning of Jan. 12. Both 2003 races reached capacity in record time. The half marathon took less than a month to achieve its record numbers, while the marathon closed to registrants in mid-July -- despite adding one thousand more registrants than any prior year.

Both elite and recreational competitors alike will wind their way through a unique adventure that has been dubbed “the most magical 26.2 miles on the planet.” They will pass through four continents and a world of fantasy, down a Hollywood Boulevard, past an Eiffel Tower and through a magical castle. All in less than seven hours.

But that’s just the big climax of a whole weekend of health and fitness activities.

The fun begins with Disney’s Health and Fitness Expo on Jan. 10-11 at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. The Expo will highlight all the latest running technologies from nutrition bars and sports drinks to exercise equipment, footwear and apparel. Nationally acclaimed experts -- including former Olympians Keith Brantly, Jeff Galloway, Julie Isphording, Frank Shorter, Bill Rodgers and Joan Benoit Samuelson – will also lead a series of running and health seminars throughout both days. Other race weekend activities include the FamilyFun Magazine 5K Family Fun Run and Kids Races at Epcot on Jan. 11.

In 2002, the marathon finish-line high-fives were for Dai Roberts, a British Naval officer stationed at Virginia Beach, Va. A runner for 22 years but competing in only his second marathon, Roberts outkicked Andrew Greenidge of Coconut Creek, Fla., winning by eight seconds with a time of 2:32:38.

Roberts returns to defend. And Greenidge, a top 10 finisher each of the past five years, is sure to contend again, along with last year’s third-place finisher, Matthew Dobson of Jay, Fla., north of Pensacola in the Panhandle.

There will definitely be a new women’s champion, however, as two-time winner Ilda Santos of So Paulo, Brazil, will not defend in 2003.

Ronnie Holassie of Miami will headline the half marathon field. Holassie won the Disney half in 2001 with 1:09:49, just three seconds off the Disney mark set by Olympian Keith Brantly a year earlier. While the record was rewritten in 2002 by Gabriel Rodriguez of Miami (1:09:07), Holassie, who clocked a 2:17:20 (sixth place) marathon at Disney in 1995, is aiming to put his name in the record book in 2003.

Oft-time wheelchair division champions Saul Mendoza and Katherine Hunter -- each with six winner’s medals -- both will defend. Mendoza, Mexico’s Athlete of the Century for the 20th century, currently resides in Wimberley, Texas. Hunter, a native of Orlando, currently resides in Alberta, Canada.

The Walt Disney World Marathon is an event that truly invites participants -- even first-time marathoners -- to succeed. With a generous seven-hour time limit, even walkers can “Go The Distance.” And the course is primarily flat asphalt. No “Heartbreak Hill” here!

And, for roadrunners that like their “fun” in smaller doses, there’s the half marathon. But it includes a full dose of excitement, kicking off just outside Epcot in the pre-dawn of a Sunday morning and taking participants on a 13.1-mile adventure that includes a trip through Epcot and the Magic Kingdom.

If a half marathon is still “too much fun,” there’s the FamilyFun Magazine 5K Fun Run held this year on Jan. 11 -- Saturday morning of race weekend. This one has also been a favorite of many running legends who have participated in the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend over the years -- Greg Meyer, Frank Shorter, Joan Samuelson and Jim Ryun among them.

But the overwhelming number of participants in the Walt Disney World Marathon and Half Marathon are not “world’s-best” caliber athletes. Sometimes, they are men and women determined to prove to themselves that they can “do” a marathon. Beyond the first-timers are participants of vastly different road-running experience and a broad spectrum of ages from 14 to 70-something whose quests are PRs – personal records.

And to the victors go the spoils! Athletes who complete the marathon in less than seven hours receive a special Mickey Mouse-shaped gold medal and athletes who complete the half marathon in less than 3-1/2 hours receive a Donald Duck-shaped medal.

To aid in the quest for accurate PRs, the Walt Disney World Marathon and Half Marathon have been leaders in use of the ChampionChip to provide participants with accurate individual net times -- from when each participant hits the starting line until he or she crosses the finish line. Each participant wears a ChampionChip -- a transmitter with a unique frequency -- as an electronic ID. It “checks in” with a computer to keep track of each participant’s time.

While entry is closed for the two longer runs, registration remains open for the FamilyFun Magazine 5K Family Fun Run on Jan. 11. The marathon-eve run through Epcot begins at 7:30 a.m. for the 5K Run, followed by a series of popular children’s races, as well as the famous “Diaper Dash” for crawlers!

Registration for the 5K race is $25 and can be accepted on race day. Children’s races are free for ages 9 and under. Registration will begin soon for the 2004 Walt Disney World Marathon and Half Marathon, scheduled for Jan. 11, 2004. Information will be available on line at http://www.disneyworldsports.com/. Special 2004 Walt Disney World Resort Marathon Packages will be available by calling 407/939-7810.

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