They're Here! The winners of the 2012 Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon Photo Contest have been announced! See the Winning Photos

The eighth annual Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon is becoming the city’s biggest weekend-long fitness event, offering a health and fitness exposition open to the public, motivational speakers, photo contest, children’s activities, and five different running events.

“There will be more than 6,000 runners taking part in these races—children and adults of all ages and fitness levels,” said Tony Spezia, president and CEO of Covenant Health. “Covenant Health is proud to be part of an event that engages the community in a healthy way.”

Two-thirds of Tennessee adults are overweight and do not get the exercise they need to be healthy, Spezia said.  The Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon raises public awareness of the importance of physical fitness and helps many people take their first steps toward healthier lifestyles.

One of the largest competitive road races in East Tennessee, the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon features five  race events:  a 26.2-mile marathon for runners and handcyclists, 13.1-mile half marathon, four-person marathon relay, 3.1-mile 5K run and one mile Kids Run.

“The Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon is already a terrific event, and it only gets better each year,” said Jason Altman, executive director of the marathon.  “I think that’s a great reflection on the hard work that the Knoxville Track Club, Covenant Health, the City of Knoxville, our many volunteers and others do to make this such a wonderful experience for the runners and for Knoxville.”

A number of new activities have been added to the marathon this year to make it an even better experience for participants and the community, Altman said. These include a special post-race awards ceremony, amateur photography contest and expanded Kids Run activities.

Registration

Online registration closed March 27, 2012. Registration for all events, including the Covenant Kids Run, is available only at the Knoxville Convention & Exhibition Center on Saturday, March 31, starting at 9 a.m. and until 5 p.m. for the Kids Run and until 8 p.m. for the other races (except for the four-person marathon relay), space permitting.

Start Times & Course

All races start at the Clinch Avenue Bridge overlooking World’s Fair Park and will finish on the 50-yard line inside Neyland Stadium.  The marathon and half marathon will start at 7:25 a.m.; the marathon, half marathon and four-person relay races will start at 7:30 a.m.; and the 5K will start at 7:45 a.m.  The marathon will follow the same course as last year, beginning on the Clinch Avenue Bridge near the Knoxville Convention Center and winding through the neighborhoods of Fort Sanders, Sequoyah Hills, Fourth & Gill, Parkridge, Island Home and Old Sevier, as well as downtown and the University of Tennessee campus.  Live entertainment will be featured at more than 15 different sites along the course, and the Party Boys DJ Show will be at the start line, finish line, Pilot post-race party and several other locations.

Covenant Kids Run

The one mile Covenant Kids Run will be held at World’s Fair Park with a warm-up party and Mascot Race starting at 4:45 p.m. and the Kids Run starting on the Clinch Ave Bridge at 6 p.m.  Children will be sent out in waves of about 75. Parents can walk with their children on the course which winds from World’s Fair Park to the Candy Factor and Fort Kid, down 11th Street, and ultimately into the stadium, crossing the same finish line that the elite athletes will use the following day.  Each child receives a t-shirt, goody bag, finisher certificate, and when they cross the finish line, a marathon medal.

Health & Fitness Expo

The Health and Fitness Expo will be held in Exhibit Halls 2 and 3 at the Knoxville Convention & Exhibition Center on Saturday, March 31 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.  It is free and open to the public.  All event participants are required to pick up their race packets at the Expo.  Special speakers at the Expo include at noon Chris Gillespie, founder and executive director of TEAM 413, and at 4 p.m. NBC’s Biggest Loser contestant Joe Mitchell.

Photo Contest

Shutterbugs are invited to participate in the marathon’s first amateur photo contest.  Photos can feature any marathon -related subject, and entries should be submitted in digital format to www.covenanthealth.com/marathonphotos by midnight April 10.  Winners will be announced April 20.

Post-Race Party & Awards

All participants in the Sunday race events are invited to attend the Pilot post-race party in Thompson-Boling Arena immediately following the races.  Awards for the 5K race will be presented at 10 a.m.   The awards for the marathon, half-marathon and four-person marathon relay will be held at 3 p.m. at Calhoun’s on the River.  Cash prizes will be awarded to the top finishers in the marathon, marathon handcyclists and half-marathon races.

Fans and Spectator Viewing

Fans can cheer on runners crossing the finish line inside Neyland Stadium and should enter via Gate 9. In addition, there are many excellent spectator sites for photographers and fans. For a course map showing locations and information, visit www.knoxvillemarathon.com.

Post-Race Injury Clinics

After the race, Covenant Therapy Centers will offer free Post-Race Injury Clinics for runners who discover bothersome aches, pains, blisters, sprains or other post-race medical concern.  Appointments are not required, and participants must simply bring a photo ID and their bib number to one of the clinic locations during the specified time:
April 2, 9-11 a.m., LeConte Therapy Services in Sevierville
April 2, 3:30-6:30 p.m., Methodist Therapy Center in Oak Ridge April 3, 3:30-6:30 p.m., Parkwest Therapy Center at Fort Sanders West

Proceeds

Proceeds from the marathon benefit the Knoxville Track Club Youth Athletics Program.  In addition, a portion of the proceeds benefit Covenant’s Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Center Innovative Recreation Cooperative (IRC), which encourages people with disabilities to pursue leisure and sports activities including handcycling, which is one of the races in the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon.

For more information on these and all marathon events, visit www.knoxvillemarathon.com

 

Register Here

Let's Run This Town

Start training now for the 2012 Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon.   Now in its eight year, the event which draws thousands of runners to downtown Knoxville will be held April 1, 2012. 

“We’re already gearing up for another first-class event for runners, spectators and the City of Knoxville,” said Tony Spezia, president and CEO of Covenant Health.
 
“The Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon promotes good health and inspires hundreds of children and adults to make physical fitness a priority in their lives.  We are very proud to sponsor this event.”  

The Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon is actually five different running events and includes the 26.2-mile marathon, 13.1-mile half marathon, four-person marathon relay, 5K run and kids fun run.  The Covenant Kids Run will be held on Saturday, March 31.  

As in previous years, all races will start on Clinch Ave. and have an exciting finish on the 50-yard line inside the University of Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium.   Online registration and information about the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon is available at www.knoxvillemarathon.com or by calling (865) 684-4294. 

Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon 2011 Results

Kenya native David Kellum, who resides in Kennesaw, Ga., won the seventh annual Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon on Sunday. Kellum finished the 26.2-mile race with a time of 2:24:32.

Jynocel Basweti of Marietta, Ga., came in second at 2:24:57, and Moninda Marube of Arlington, Texas, was third with a time of 2:30:00. Both Basweti and Marube also are natives of Kenya.

In the women’s category, the top spot went to Kathy Wolski of Knoxville, Tenn., for the third consecutive year. Her time was 2:58:45, her best of the three victories. Katie Anderson of Knoxville, Tenn., came in second at 3:04:36, and Mary Snipes of Franklin, Tenn., came in third at 3:19:56.

In the men’s half-marathon, Kenya native George Towett of Kennesaw, Ga., finished the course at 1:07:44 to take first place. Alan Horton of Knoxville, Tenn., was second with a time of 1:09:58. Third place for the men was Andrew Press of Nashville, Tenn. He finished at 1:11:04. 

In the women’s half-marathon, Alexa Hinton of Nashville, Tenn., took the top spot with a time of 1:22:43. Natasha Yaremczuk of Clermont, Fla., finished second at 1:23:27, and Gina Krabbendam of Lookout Mountain, Tenn., finished third at 1:25:26.

In the men’s 5K run, Chris Kane of Knoxville, Tenn., took first with a time of 16:41. Ed Wright of Oak Ridge, Tenn., finished second at 16:51, and Ray Wilson of Powell, Tenn., finished third at 18:09.

 

Madeline Christian of Knoxville, Tenn., won the women’s 5K with a time of 19:46. Maria Jugan of Louisville, Tenn., took second place at 21:40, and Meredith Priest of Knoxville, Tenn., took third place with a time of 21:57.

The field also included several handcyclists competing in the marathon. In the men’s category, Greg Queen of Lily, Ky., came in first for the second consecutive year with a time of 1:44:03. Vern Achenbach of Snellville, Ga., finished second at 1:50:32, and Joseph Beimfohr of Annandale, Va., finished third with a time of 2:04:14.

The only competitor in the women’s category was Carly Waugh of Knoxville, Tenn., who finished fourth overall among handcyclists for with a time of 2:08:36.

The Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon also offered a four-person marathon relay and the one-mile Covenant Kids Run.

"Congratulations to all the winners and participants in the seventh annual Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon," said Tony Spezia, president and CEO of Covenant Health, the marathon's title sponsor.

"We would also like to congratulate and thank the city of Knoxville, the Knoxville Track Club, the community and the volunteers for again making this the most successful year for the event so far with a record number of more than 6,700 participants.

For results of all races, go to www.milliseconds.com.   For additional information, visit www.knoxvillemarathon.com.


Record number of racers participate in 2010!

Thousands of runners take off at the start of the sixth annual Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon at the Clinch Avenue bridge in downtown Knoxville on the morning of Sunday, March 28. A record number of more than 5,800 people participated in the 2010 race events, which included a marathon, half-marathon, four-person marathon relay, 5K and the Covenant Kids Run on Saturday, March 27.

Kenya native Geoffrey Kiprotich, who resides in Atlanta, Ga., crosses the finish line at 2:23:22 to win the sixth annual Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon on Sunday, March 28. All runners in the 2010 race events crossed the finish line at the 50-yard line of Neyland Stadium on the University of Tennessee campus. Also pictured holding the winner’s tape are Kristi Altman and Race Director Jason Altman.

 

See more photos of the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon and Coach Missy Kane's team at www.covenanthealth.com/missykaneblog

 

The Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon is becoming one of the most popular running events in the region. The event draws more than 5,000 runners, joggers, handcyclists and walkers from around the U.S. and throughout the world.

Knoxville’s multi-faceted race weekend includes a pre-race Expo with more than 50 exhibitors and Kids Fun Run on Saturday followed by the marathon races on Sunday.  All races finish on the 50-yard line in the University of Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium, one of the country’s most impressive collegiate athletic facilities.

The Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon is actually five different running events held over two days.  The 26.2-mile marathon, 13.1-mile half marathon, four-person marathon relay, and 5K run are held on Sunday and the one-mile kids run on Saturday.

All races have an exciting finish inside UT’s Neyland Stadium. For many, it is the thrill of seeing themselves on the JumboTron as they cross the finish line that inspires them to run the 5k, half marathon, relay or full marathon. But participants soon realize that the best reward is what they gain by the entire experience, says Tony Spezia, president and CEO of Covenant Health.

“We can point with pride to many people who have been motivated by the marathon to start exercising and become more fit,” said Spezia. “The event raises public awareness of the importance of physical fitness and supports our organization’s mission to improve the health and quality of life in our community.”

For more information about the marathon, go to www.knoxvillemarathon.com Information is also available by calling the Knoxville Track Club at (865) 684-4294.

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