The Pittsburgh Marathon's five-year breather will end next May, now that a Findlay-based retailer pledged to help pay the bills.
The Dick's Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon will be run May 3 for the first time since 2003. It will be the 20th time since the 26.2-mile street race over the city's hills and bridges began in 1985.
"We do expect this to be one of the elite marathons in this country yet again," said Jeffrey R. Hennion, executive vice president of Dick's Sporting Goods. "We are going to make sure runners everywhere know about it."
A precise route for the race is still in the works, as are the cash prizes for the winners, said Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, who joined Hennion and Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato on Monday to announce preliminary plans for the race's return.
In 2003, the first-place male and female finishers took home $12,500, and the start/finish line was at Heinz Field on the North Shore.
"The term 'ecstatic' comes to mind," said Kevin Smith, owner of Elite Runners and Walkers in Robinson, where customers have asked him at least once a day for news on the marathon's return. "There are races that are harder and longer, but for the majority of runners, this will be the hardest thing they'll ever do."
Then-Mayor Tom Murphy canceled the 2004 race because the title sponsor, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, pulled out. Murphy said the city couldn't afford to pay the costs of extra police protection and cleanup because it was on the verge of bankruptcy and laid off 730 workers.
Hennion said Dick's made a three-year commitment to sponsor the race. He would not disclose the amount of the contribution.
City and county taxpayers will cover the cost of sanitation workers and police officers who work during and after the race, officials said.
"It hasn't been determined what that will be, but there will be some sort of financial responsibility for the city and the county," said Megan Dardanell, a county spokeswoman.
She said details of Dick's Sporting Goods' financial support likely would be released once organizers have raised all the money needed for the race.
Pittsburgh's financial outlook has improved since 2003, and the city posted an $89.5 million surplus last year. Officials have estimated the cost of the race could be $700,000 to $800,000.
Onorato said getting Dick's to be title sponsor was key to reviving the race, which he expects to be a major boon to the economy.
"It's the PR and the national exposure you get. You can't put a price tag on that," Onorato said.
Dick's will advertise the race in a store circular that goes to 60 million to 70 million people a week, Hennion said.
Other sponsors announced for the return include Respironics and UPMC Sports Medicine. Respironics will sponsor a half-marathon. UPMC will provide training seminars throughout the year and medical support to runners on the course and at the finish line.
A UPMC spokeswoman declined to discuss yesterday why the hospital system dropped its sponsorship.
"My first marathon was the last Pittsburgh Marathon," said Dr. Jennifer Rudin of Squirrel Hill. "When it disappeared, it was devastating."
Rudin and her friend, Michele Fetting, began lobbying city and county officials two years ago to revive the race.
"It's just great to have one again," said Charlie Ban of Shadyside, a board member of the Pharaoh Hounds, a club geared toward training runners.
Many club members run marathons in other cities, Ban said, where the logistics of dining and lodging in an unfamiliar place can complicate preparations for a race that takes most runners at least four hours and 30 minutes to complete.
"It really adds a lot of stress to the weekend, so being able to take that out of the equation with a race at home will be good," Ban said.
Next year's race likely will begin in front of the City-County Building, Downtown, and finish at the renovated Point State Park, Ravenstahl said.
Runners traditionally go through Downtown, North Side, South Side, Strip District, Bloomfield, Shadyside, Oakland, East Liberty, Point Breeze and Highland Park.
The first Pittsburgh Marathon attracted about 2,500 runners. It eventually grew to attract 6,000 people from 50 states and 20 countries, organizers said.
Rudin advised those thinking of running the Pittsburgh Marathon: "Spend a lot of time doing hill work."
Larger text
Smaller text
Print this article
E-mail this article
