RACE INFORMATION

​MARATHON RUNNERS
The 2013 Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon will be held on Sunday, Oct. 20 and started in tandem with the 1/2 marathon near the intersection of Broad and Third Streets in downtown Columbus at 7:30 a.m. The course was open until 3:00 p.m. Awards were given to winners from different age groups (top three overall in the marathon and 1/2 marathon and top three in each age group). Following are winners of the 2012 Nationwide Insurance Columbus Marathon:

Craig Curley, Tucson, AZ 2:19:03

Lauren Woodring, Bethel Park, PA 2:45:29

There is a limit of 7,000 participants for the full marathon.​



1/2 MARATHON RUNNERS

The 2013 Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus ½ Marathon will be held on Sunday, Oct. 2o and started in tandem with the full marathon near the corner of Broad and Third streets. The 1/2 marathon athletes ran or walked with the full marathoners until they turned left onto Nationwide Blvd. to the finish at 13.1 miles. ½ Marathon runners started with the rest of the field at 7:30 a.m. and the course was open until 11:30 a.m. Following are 2012 Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus 1/2 Marathon winners:

Julius Koskei, Kenya 1:03:44

Katie McGregor, Savage, MN 1:13:32 (event record)

There is a limit of 11,000 participants in the 1/2 marathon.

WHEELCHAIR
The 2013 Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon will feature a Wheelchair Division that offered disabled athletes the opportunity to compete along the same challenging (yet fast and flat!) route as the other marathon divisions. Following are the winners of the 2012 Nationwide Insurance Marathon:

Josh George, Champaign, IL 1:47:42

Helen Garen, Beavercreek, OH 4:00:08


WHEELCHAIR RACE INFORMATION
The race began promptly at 7:27 am. A bike escort will accompany wheelchair racers. See the link HERE for more information on our wheelchair policy. 
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WALKERS
We love walkers! The Nationwide Children's Hospital Marathon & 1/2 Marathon has a special start corral specifically for walkers and keeps the course open until 3 p.m. for walkers in the full marathon and 11:30 a.m. for those in the 1/2 marathon, the same time limits as those for the runners in both events. Additionally, the New Albany Walking Club will offer pace groups to pace walkers throughout the course -- visit their booth at the Expo to learn more.
See the 2012 Competitive Walker Award Winners here!​


COMPETITIVE WALKER DIVISION RULES
All participants in the Competitive Walker Division must wear a special sticker on the front of their shirt and a special bib on the back of their shirt on Race Day. Judges will be located on the course. Any participant in the Competitive Walker Division seen running will be ineligible for Competitive Walking Division Awards.

The Competitive Walking Division stickers & bibs can be picked up at the Competiive Walking Division table at the Expo. This table will be located next to Number Pick-up. ONLY those walkers interested in competing for awards must wear the sticker & bib; walkers taking part in the marathon and 1/2 marathon who are not competing in the Competitive Walking Division do NOT need a sticker or bib.

Following the Race, all participants in the Competitive Walker Division will be required to write their name and race number on their back bib, and turn it in to the information table in Celebration Village for verification. Those participants who fail to turn in their bib will be ineligible for awards.

Join us on October 20, 2013 and experience why the Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon and ½ Marathon is one of the best walker-friendly events in the country. Note: you must be 16 years of age (as of 10/20/13) to participate in the full marathon and 12 years of age to participate in the 1/2 marathon.


PACE TEAMS

The Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon offers free pacing from expert pacers with the Clif Bar Pace Team. This team of runners provides fun and excitement for both first time, and experienced marathoners looking to reach their running goals — whether that's a personal best, or just getting across the finish line. Click here for more information!



WEATHER
For the past several years, the Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon weekend has brought us perfect marathon running or walking weather, with an average temperature at start of 42°F and 58°F at finish. The crossing of fingers has worked -- keep it up for this year!
Check out Columbus' current weather conditions as well as a five-day look at what the coming week holds as we move closer to race day.

 

ENTERTAINMENT

Click here to view this years course entertainment!


INCLEMENT WEATHER POLICY
The Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon puts the safety of its participants, spectators, staff and volunteers first. Dangerous weather conditions pose a unique challenge to an event the size of a Marathon or 1/2 Marathon. Therefore we have adopted the following Inclement Weather Policy:

Weather forecasts will be monitored prior to the event, with special attention placed on the possibility of heavy rain, thunder and lightning, high winds and extreme temperatures. If necessary, athletes will be made aware of these conditions and possible dangers which could result on the Columbus Marathon website (www.columbusmarathon.com), as well as through other means of communication such as e-mail, Twitter, Facebook and public address announcements.



The Race Director and Medical Director, in consultation with law enforcement, fire/EMS and other officials, will monitor the weather and make a decision if any action will be taken to modify the race. Possible changes include: Altering the start time or in extreme situations,cancellation of the event. Visible lightning will cause the race to be postponed for a minimum of 15 minutes. Additional sightings will continue to delay the race in 15-minute increments.



If extremely high heat and humidity is predicted, extra water will be provided to the athletes, both prior to, during and after the event. The medical team will be alerted that athletes may require additional medical attention during and after the event due to these conditions. If it is felt that it is unsafe for participants to start the race due to severe temperatures and humidity, the race may be cancelled.

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Race personnel reserve the right to delay, cancel, or suspend the race due to inclement weather. Participants must abandon the race if ordered to do so by the race personnel, medical staff, fire or police personnel.