FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2015 Chevron Houston Marathon Race Weekend
HOUSTON (January 14, 2015) - On January 16-18, the 2015 Chevron Houston
Marathon Race Weekend will attract over 250,000 participants, spectators
and volunteers to the streets of Houston. Sunday's Chevron Houston
Marathon and Aramco Houston Half Marathon features a 25,000 runner
registrant cap, tying the highest combined total ever resulting in the
largest single-day sporting event in Houston.
Race Weekend kicks off on Friday, with the Memorial Hermann Ironman Sports
Medicine Institute EXPO. The two-day EXPO will attract over 25,000
visitors each day and feature over 120 industry vendors.
Run for a Reason
Thousands of race participants will arrive on the starting line to run for
personal accomplishment and to help others through the event's Run for a
Reason charity program. This year's fundraisers will run for official
charities and continue to build on the $2.6 million garnered in 2014. The
Chevron Houston Marathon's Run for a Reason charitable program has
generated over $21 million in its 21-year history.
Elite Field
In the marathon, 2012 Chevron Houston Marathon runner-up Debebe Tolossa
leads the men's field, while 2014 Chevron Houston Marathon fourth-place
finisher Biruktait Degefa will face 2012 LA Marathon champion Fatuma Sado
in the women's race. The prize purse for the open marathon races is
$170,000, with a $40,000 first-place award for both the men's and women's
winners.
Many of America's best long-distance runners will also be part of the
event, participating in the 2015 Men's and Women's USA Half Marathon
Championships. Both national championship races are part of the Aramco
Houston Half Marathon.
Deep fields have been assembled for both races. 2014 Boston Marathon and
USA Half Marathon champion Meb Keflezighi, along with Josphat Boit and
Shadrack Biwott, who finished third and seventh in the 2014 USA Half
Marathon Championships, lead the men's field. 2012 U.S. Olympian Janet
Bawcom, 2006 USA Half Marathon champion Annie Bersagel, 2014 Dallas Half
Marathon champion Sara Hall and 2013 CIM champion Becky Wade are among the
women to watch in the field.
Honorary Starters
On Saturday, the honorary starters for the ABB 5K are Becky Wade, Lisa
Thompson, Kelly Williamson and Kate Papenberg. A former Rice University
four-time NCAA Division I All-American, Wade is a 2016 U.S Olympic Trials
Marathon qualifier who received a grant from the Houston Marathon
Foundation to aid in her athletic development, while Thompson is the 2014
Visually Impaired National Marathon Champion, Williamson won the 2014
Ironman Woodlands and Papenburg qualified for the 2016 U.S Olympic Trials
Marathon.
On Sunday, the honorary starters for the Chevron Houston Marathon and
Aramco Houston Half Marathon will be Peter and Aaron Berry, who, along with
their sister Willa, survived a tragic automobile accident that took the
lives of their parents, Josh and Robyn, in the summer of 2011. Josh and
Robyn were longtime participants in the Chevron Houston Marathon race
weekend of events. Other special guests include the City of Houston's Mayor
Pro Tem and City Council member, District H, Ed Gonzalez, and City Council
member at Large, Position One, Stephen Costello, both of whom will be
running the Chevron Houston Marathon.
Chevron Houston Marathon Race Weekend By The Numbers
- 200,000 - Estimated number of spectators along the 26.2-mile course
- $51+ million economic impact to the city of Houston
- 45 - Number of countries represented
- 1 - Number of wheelchair racers
- 11 - Number of handcycle racers
- 41 - Average age of male participant
- 38 - Average age of female participant
- The 150,000th marathon and 100,000th half marathon finisher will cross
the finish line during the 2015 Chevron Houston Marathon and Aramco Houston
Half Marathon
- Top 5 states - TX, LA, CA, CO, OK
- Top 5 foreign countries - Mexico, Canada, Brazil, United Kingdom, Brazil,
Ethiopia
- Top 5 cities outside Texas - Lake Charles, LA; New York, NY; Tulsa, OK;
Denver, CO; Chicago, IL
- Top 5 cities in Texas: Houston, Katy, Sugar Land, Cypress, Spring
- 47,880,000 - Estimated number of calories that will be burned at the
Chevron Houston Marathon and Aramco Houston Half Marathon
- H-E-B's free post-race participant breakfast serves:
- 22,000 eggs, 12,000 biscuits and 200 gallons of coffee
For complete information on the 2015 Chevron Houston Marathon, Aramco
Houston Half Marathon and USA Half Marathon Championships, please visit
www.chevronhoustonmarathon.com.
About the Houston Marathon Committee, Inc.
Established in 1972, the Houston Marathon Committee, Inc. (HMC), a Running
USA Founding Member, annually organizes the nation's premier winter
marathon, half-marathon, and 5K. Over 250,000 participants, volunteers and
spectators make Chevron Houston Marathon Race Day the largest single-day
sporting event in Houston. Race Weekend generates over $50 million in
economic impact for the region annually. In 2014, the Run For a Reason
Charity Program raised a record $2.6 million and the HMC retained Gold
Certification from the Council of Responsible Sport for industry-leading
sustainability initiatives. Host to 14 U.S. Half Marathon Championships
since 2005 and the 1992 women's Olympic Trials Marathon, the HMC conducted
the nationally-televised 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon, which featured
men and women competing on the same course simultaneously for the first
time, vying for the chance to represent Team USA at the 2012 Olympic Games.
For more information, visit www.chevronhoustonmarathon.com or call
713.957.3453.
###
|
