Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Marathon

History

The marathon was established in 1998.

The 2006 marathon had 21,159 participants—17,339 of whom successfully finished the race.

A half marathon race over 21.0975 km was added to supplement the established full marathon race from the 2010 edition onwards.

In 2013, Bernard Koech set the half marathon course record of 58:41. This was the fourth-fastest time ever for the event at the time, although the time did not meet official IAAF requirements as the course contained an excessive downhill.

The 2020 edition of the race was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Course

The marathon originally commenced at 6th Avenue at Palm and concluded on Broadway Avenue downtown San Diego. The following year, the finish moved to the Naval Training Center, and three years later moved to the Parade Deck at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego. In 2010 a new course was defined which ended at SeaWorld San Diego. In 2013, the course was again re-routed with a new finish line at Petco Park. There is also a half-marathon over portions of the same course and a four-person relay option.

Runners have seven hours in which to complete the marathon. The four-person relay option has a four-hour time limit.

Foundation controversy

Since its inception, the marathon claims to have raised in excess of $100 million for charities.

In 2008 the Competitor Group took over Elite Racing, the company that had been organizing the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon. The following year, 2009, an internal audit revealed that the charity in whose name the race had been run, Elite Racing Foundation for Children, Education & Medical Research, had been improperly commingling funds with the for-profit Elite Racing. It further found that the foundation was being operated "in many instances for the benefit of the for-profit," and that the charity's role in hosting the races had been overstated. As a result, the race had benefited improperly from hundreds of thousands of dollars in public subsidies and grants. In announcing the results of the audit, Competitor said it would return $190,500 to San Diego County and $152,544 to the City of San Diego, spend the remaining foundation funds on health and wellness causes, file amended tax returns, and dissolve the foundation. Competitor Group made the final payments in October 2009. Altogether the company returned $344,176 to the city and county.

Records

In 2015, Harriette Thompson of Charlotte, North Carolina, completed the Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Marathon at the age of 92 years, 65 days, thus becoming the oldest woman to complete a marathon. In 2017, at the same event, she became the oldest woman to finish a half marathon, at age 94.

Winners

Marathon

Key: Course record (in bold)

Half marathon

Notes

References

References

1. Cruz, Dan (2010-06-07). [http://www.iaaf.org/news/kind=100/newsid=56964.html Limo, Gromova take San Diego wins]. [[IAAF]]. Retrieved on 2011-06-08.
2. [https://www.espn.com/sports/endurance/story/_/id/9335523/bernard-koech-wins-rock-n-roll-half-marathon-fastest-ever-us Kenyan runs fastest half in U.S.]. [[ESPN]] (2013-06-02). Retrieved on 2013-10-23.
3. [https://www.iaaf.org/records/toplists/road-running/half-marathon/outdoor/men/senior Men's Half Marathon All Time Best]. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-10-23.
4. "Update on the Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Marathon and Half".
5. "Updates | Rock n Roll Marathon Series | Marathon Half Marathon Events".
6. "Shamu to get view of marathon finish - the San Diego Union-Tribune".
7. "San Diego Weekend Guide: May 31-June 2 – Oz and One Long Run - Times …".
8. [http://san-diego.competitor.com/files/2010/02/SD10-Course-Map-2.19.10.pdf Course Map]
9. "» Exciting Changes for 2013 | Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series".
10. [http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/may/15/1n15marathon001838-rock-n-roll-race-organizers-ret/ San Diego Union-Tribune, May 15, 2009]
11. [http://www.10news.com/news/19471146/detail.html 10news.com]
12. [http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/oct/06/marathon-organizers-finish-repaying-city-county/?&zIndex=177901 San Diego Union-Tribune, October 5, 2009]
13. (June 2015). "Harriette Thompson, 92, becomes oldest woman to complete a marathon | Sport". The Guardian.
14. Boren, Cindy. "At 94, Harriette Thompson becomes the oldest woman to run a half-marathon". The Washington Post.
15. "Rock 'n' Roll Running Series - San Diego".