Twin Cities Marathon

The Twin Cities Marathon (TCM) is an annual marathon in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area. The race is often dubbed "The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America." The TCM was first run in 1982, and typically takes place during the first weekend in October. In 2006 the Marathon agreed to its first corporate sponsorship. The sponsor was/is Medtronic, Inc. The official name of the marathon changed in 2006 to, "Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon" (MTCM). The 2007 MTCM took place on October 7, celebrating its 26th anniversary.

In addition to the marathon, the MTCM has expanded to a full weekend of events providing opportunities for runners and wheelers of all ages and abilities. Additional events for adults include the MTC 10 Mile Run and the State Capitol 5 km Fun Run/Walk. Events for children now include Kids’ One-Mile & Half-Mile Fun Runs, Toddler Trot and Diaper Dash. In addition, the MTCM sponsors a competitive 1-mile road race, typically held the last weekend of April.

The Twin Cities Marathon was ranked as the third most competitive marathon for American runners by "Running Times" magazine. [cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=2006 Marathoners of the Year | date= | publisher=Running Times | url =http://runningtimes.com/rt/articles/?id=10511 | work = | pages = | accessdate = 2007-12-22 | language = ]

History

There had been a marathon held in Minneapolis since 1963, originally called the Land of Lakes Marathon. The race was renamed City of Lakes Marathon in 1976 and moved to a four-lap course around Lakes Calhoun and Harriet. Also in 1976, Saint Paul first held the neighboring Saint Paul Marathon, whose course also remained within the city limits. A joint race, taking advantage of the scenic running routes on both sides of the Mississippi, was proposed soon thereafter and first run in 1982. [cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=25 Years and Running... A Twin Cities Tradition Evolves | date= | publisher=Medtronic | url =http://www.mtcmarathon.org/Archives/ | work = | pages = | accessdate = 2007-12-22 | language = ]

Course

The MTCM course begins at the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis, and winds around several of the city's scenic lakes before turning along the banks of the Mississippi River. The course follows the river for several miles before crossing into Saint Paul, and then proceeds up historic Summit Avenue to finish at the state capitol building. Miles 21-25 of the course proceed on a steady uphill from the river, and are considered among the more challenging finishes among American marathons, although the downhill last half-mile allows for relatively strong finishes.

Race results

Men's

*1982 Allan Zachariasen, Denmark, 2:11:49
*1983 Allan Zachariasen, Denmark, 2:13:20
*1984 Fred Torneden, Manhattan, Kansas, 2:11:35
*1985 Phil Coppes, Clinton, Iowa, 2:10:05 (course record)
*1986 Bill Donakowski, Albany, California, 2:10:41
*1987 Marty Froelick, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 2:10:59
*1988 Danny Boltz, Australia, 2:14:10
*1989 Don Janicki, Louisville, Colorado, 2:12:18
*1990 Maurilio Castillo, Mexico, 2:11:01
*1991 Malcom Norwood, Australia, 2:12:10
*1992 David Mangai, Laramie, Wyoming, 2:15:33
*1993 Ed Eyestone, Layton, Utah, 2:14:34
*1994 Pablo Sierra, Spain, 2:11:35
*1995 Rafael Zepeda, Mexico, 2:15:09
*1996 Joel Onwonga, Kenya, 2:13:13
*1997 Andrew Musuva, Kenya, 2:14:59
*1998 Andrew Musuva, Farmington, New Mexico, 2:15:19
*1999 Andrew Musuva, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2:13:41
*2000 Sergei Fedotov, Rockville, Maryland, 2:12:40
*2001 Joshua Kipkemboi, Concord, Massachusetts, 2:14:07
*2002 Dan Browne, Portland, Oregon, 2:11:35
*2003 Eddy Hellebuyck, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2:12:47 Doping violations: Tested positive for banned substance EPO Erythropoietin.
*2004 Augustus Kavutu, Kenya, 2:13:33
*2005 Mbarak Hussein, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2:18:28
*2006 Mbarak Hussein, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2:13:51
*2007 Mykola Antonenko, Ukraine, 2:13:54

Women's

*1982 Sally Brent, Sioux City, Iowa, 2:43:50
*1983 Gabrielle Anderson, Sun Valley, Idaho, 2:36:22
*1984 Debbie Mueller, Brookline, Massachusetts, 2:34:50
*1985 Janice Ettle, Freeport, Minnesota, 2:35:47
*1986 Kim Rosenquist, Spokane, Washington, 2:32:11
*1987 Sylvie Bornet, France, 2:30:11
*1988 Ria Van Landeghem, Belgium, 2:28:11
*1989 Kim Jones, Spokane, Washington, 2:31:42
*1990 Sylvie Bornet, France, 2:29:22
*1991 Janis Klecker, Minnetonka, Minnesota, 2:30:31
*1992 Janis Klecker, Minnetonka, Minnesota, 2:36:50
*1993 Lisa Weidenbach, Gig Harbor, Washington, 2:33:38
*1994 Suzanne Cirric, Yugoslavia, 2:34:04
*1995 Gwyn Coogan, Boulder, Colorado, 2:32:58
*1996 Olga Appell, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2:27:59
*1997 Lyubov Morgunova, Russia, 2:30:43
*1998 Zinaida Semenova, Russia, 2:32:06
*1999 Kim Pawelek, Jacksonville, Florida, 2:37:56
*2000 Zinaida Semenova, Russia, 2:29:37
*2001 Zinaida Semenova, Russia, 2:26:51 (course record)
*2002 Irina Bogacheva, Kyrgystan, 2:29:39
*2003 Blake Russell, Acton, Massachusetts, 2:30:41
*2004 Irina Permitina, Russia, 2:26:53
*2005 Nicole Aish, Boston, Massachusetts, 2:40:21
*2006 Marla Runyan, Eugene, Oregon, 2:32:15
*2007 Svetlana Ponomarenko, Russia, 2:34:09

Twin Cities Marathon course records (through 2002)

References

External links

* [http://www.twincitiesmarathon.org Official website]