From the Disney Parks Blog and written by: Sarah Harris
We’re racing into the 27thWalt Disney World Marathon Weekend presented by Cigna this January 8 – 12, 2020 and gearing up for another exciting set of events. Still thinking about joining us for the most magical race on Earth? Take a look at what makes this race uniquely Disney and all the ways it’s more than a Marathon!
Race Big
Growing over the years, Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend is considered one of the largest race weekends in the United States. During the 2019 event, nearly 50,000 runners from more than 70 countries participated in all of the weekend’s events. What better way to share in the excitement of accomplishing your goals than with celebrating many like-minded people!
26.2 Miles of Magic
Every mile is magic when you runDisney and during the Walt Disney World Marathon, you’ll have the opportunity to run through the Walt Disney World theme parks and ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, filled with Disney characters and on-course entertainment. Did you know that you can qualify for other races from our timed events? The Walt Disney World Marathon is a USATF certified course, and considered to be more flat, making it perfect for earning a qualifying time for the Boston Marathon!
Test of Endurance
Take your race weekend to the next level with several multi-race challenges, unique to the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend. Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge, celebrating its 15th Anniversary, combines the Half and Full back to back for 39.3 miles. Get Dopey over racing and conquer all four weekend events on consecutive days for a total of 48.6 miles during the Dopey Challenge and earn additional medals for your achievements!
Dream Big, Princess
“Bright young women, sick of swimming, ready to stand!” Or in this case, RUN! Did you know, Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend was one of the first major races, available to all, where the female participants outnumbered the males, with last year’s ladies accounting for almost 60% of finishers. Grab your friends and family and make it a girls trip complete with achieving goals!
A Family Affair
Not only are there race distances for all skill levels but Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend has many opportunities available for watching your runner. Spread miles of ch’EAR on race day and be part of their big day when you watch them from available viewing locations. Spectator viewing locations are typically available at the Start and Finish Line areas as well as select on-course viewpoint locations – please refer to the official digital event guide closer to event time!
Making a Positive Impact
Runners truly make our WORLD go around. We are proud to share that runDisney plus our generous runners and volunteers were able to raise more than $98,000 for our celebrated charity, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society during the 2019 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend. Additionally, during the 2018-2019 runDisney race season, almost 12K pounds of clothing were donated from runners, 49K pounds of mixed recycling were recycled and more than 3,700 banana peels were collected!
Let us know if you’ll be joining us in January! Share your magical moments in using the hashtag #WDWMarathon in social and follow runDisney on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.
To learn more about other runDisney events, please visit here.
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