The Walt Disney World Marathon is an annual
marathon held every January in
Orlando
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...
,
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
by
''run''Disney (a division of
Disney Sports Enterprises). The race has been held since 1994. The marathon is part of a weekend race series that also includes a
5K, a
10K, and a
half marathon
A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...
, as well as a number of challenges involving one or more of these races.
[
]
History
The first marathon, run in January 1994, featured 5,588 runners. This marathon was the first race that launched the Disney Endurance Series, which is now runDisney.
In 1995, the men's current race record was set by Leonid Shvetsov
Leonid Shvetsov (born 28 March 1969) is a Russian long-distance runner. He competed in the men's marathon at the 1996 Summer Olympics and the 2004 Summer Olympics. He also held the record for the fastest time at Walt Disney World Marathon
The ...
, of Russia, at 2:11:50. While in 1996, electronic timing was first used to produce race results.
With the 1998 fifth anniversary of the WDW Marathon having a theme of "Herculean Entertainment", the inaugural Donald Half Marathon is held on the same day until 2005. A corporate relay option was also added to the marathon.
In 2003, the first local resident, Bea Marie Alitieri of Clermont, won the 10th anniversary of the WDW Marathon women's division at a pace of 2:53:10. Brazilian Adriano Bastos began his eight-year streak of consecutive marathon wins in 2003. The 10th anniversary also saw the debut of the "perfect" program, which included 152 runners who had completed all ten Marathons between 1994 and 2003.
In 2006, the first Goofy Race and Half Challenge is first given with the full and half marathons were first ran on separate days, Saturday and Sunday.
The 2010 races set two records with the largest participant field (55,000) and the coldest starting temperatures (low 30s). Also in 2010, the first Pre-race Pasta Party and a Post Race Celebration were held at Epcot.
In 2011 the racers were allowed to vote for the medal design and it was the year of "Marathon Monday". Bastos' winning streak was broken by fellow Brazilian Fredison Costa. The 2012 year was the 15th anniversary of the Donald Half Marathon which saw the only running of the Walt Disney World Chip and Dale Marathon Relay.
The 20th Anniversary of the Walt Disney World Marathon was held in 2013, as 95 marathon runners who ran all 20 marathons were recognized. 2013 was the first year where men were outnumbered by the women (57%).
The 2014 World Marathon Weekend added the Walt Disney World 10K plus the Dopey Challenge for completing all four weekend races. RunDisney reduced the number of registration allowed for the races and add more race corrals and gender-specific sizing for participant shirts.
A new medal was introduced for the Goofy Challenge for its 10th anniversary in 2015. The Castaway Cay Challenge race was inaugurated in 2015, with those that ran a Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 5K plus distance race and booked the next cruise on Disney Dream. 700 racers participated in this 5K race on the Disney Cruise Line
Disney Cruise Line is a cruise line operation that is a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. The company was incorporated in 1996 as Magical Cruise Company Limited, through the first vessel, ''Disney Magic'' and is domiciled in London, Englan ...
's private island, Castaway Cay.
In 2017, the Goofy Challenge, Dopey Challenge, and half marathon were not held because of anticipated lightning and a lack of necessary shelter on course should it be required during the race. All registered half marathon runners received their half marathon medals.
The Marathon celebrated its 25th anniversary in January 2018, at which time the field of 26,000 participants included the remaining 76 "perfect" runners who had completed all 25 Marathons between 1994 and 2018. 75-year-old Gretna, Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
native Rudy Smith was the oldest of those "perfect" participants, completing his 57th career marathon in a time of 5:01:03. That year, Lock Haven University
Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania (LHU) is a public university in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The main campus consists of and the branch campus covers . It offers 69 undergradua ...
alum Nicholas Hilton broke the 13-year streak of Brazilian victors (compiled by Adriano Bastos and Fredison Costa) to become just the second American male to win the Marathon.
Hilton won again in 2020, becoming the first American male to win the race twice. Temperatures during the event reached a record high of 84 degrees, prompting event coordinators to shorten the course by two miles and send out a text message to participants: "Given today's rising temperatures and the length of the race, for our runners' safety, we are modifying the remainder of the event." The message was further clarified on Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
: "Even with the modified course – run times will still be recorded and runners will receive medals at the finish line."
The 2021 in-person edition of the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identifie ...
, with all registrants given the option of running the race virtually or obtaining a full refund.
In 2022, Brittany Charboneau became the first woman to win all four races and the Dopey Challenge
Course
Disney's Blizzard Beach
Disney's Blizzard Beach is a water theme park located at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida near Orlando. All water areas are heated (at approximately ), with the exception of the melting snow in the ice cave of Cross Country Cre ...
Water Park was added to the marathon route in 1995. The course was again redesigned in 1999 to included the newly opened Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park is a zoological theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando. Owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division, it is the l ...
theme park. The course was changed again in 2013, adding a lap around the Walt Disney World Speedway plus some distance in the ESPN Wide World of Sports. In 2020, the course was amended to remove the Wide World of Sports segment that many runners had come to call "The Rat Maze" and replace it with a segment passing through the eastern portion of Blizzard Beach.
Challenges
Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge, introduced in 2006, involves completing both the Half Marathon on Saturday and the full Marathon on Sunday for a combined 39.3 miles over two days.
The Dopey Challenge, introduced in 2014 along with the Disney World 10K, involves completing all four races – the Walt Disney World 5K on Thursday, the Walt Disney World 10K on Friday, the Walt Disney World Half Marathon on Saturday, and the Walt Disney World Marathon on Sunday – for a combined 48.6 miles over four days. In additional to the four individual race medals, runners who complete the Dopey Challenge are awarded both the Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge and Dopey Challenge medals.
The Castaway Cay Challenge, introduced in 2015, involves completing any Marathon Weekend race before boarding the ''Disney Dream
The ''Disney Dream'' is the third cruise ship operated by Disney Cruise Line, part of The Walt Disney Company. She is the first of the ''Dream''-class. She currently sails three-day, four-day, and occasional five-day cruises to the Bahamas. The ...
'' at Port Canaveral
Port Canaveral is a cruise, cargo, and naval port in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is one of the busiest cruise ports in the world with 4.5 million cruise passengers passing through during 2016. Over 5.4 million tonnes of bulk car ...
the following Monday and sailing to Castaway Cay –Disney Cruise Line
Disney Cruise Line is a cruise line operation that is a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. The company was incorporated in 1996 as Magical Cruise Company Limited, through the first vessel, ''Disney Magic'' and is domiciled in London, Englan ...
's private island
A private island is a disconnected body of land wholly owned by a private citizen or corporation. Although this exclusivity gives the owner substantial control over the property, private islands remain under the jurisdiction of national and som ...
in the Bahamas
The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...
– to complete a 5K race across the island.
Winners
Brazilian Adriano Bastos holds the record of most WDW Marathon wins at eight, while Brazilian Giovanna Martins holds the women's record at four.
Key: Course record
Marathon
Half marathon
See also
*List of marathon races in North America
The following is a list of marathon races in North America.
Legend
The criteria for whether a marathon receives an IAAF Label designation are based on six general issues: race organisation, course timing and measurement, media services, quality ...
Notes
References
External links
*
{{Walt Disney World
Marathons in the United States
Recurring sporting events established in 1994
Marathon
1994 establishments in Florida
Walt Disney World