By Zach Schneider A trio of longtime Grandma’s Marathon start line volunteers will make up the Class of 2024 and be inducted in June into the event’s Hall of Fame. Greg Helgeson, Paul Iversen and Bob Larkin are this year’s inductees, having been chosen for making longstanding
Jerry Thoreson has been named the 2024 recipient of Grandma's Marathon's prestigious Marsh Nelson Media Award. Thoreson has been involved with covering the event since the late 1990s, when he worked in the composing room at the Duluth News Tribune. He remembers watching the race from
Two-time ESPY award winner and Guiness world record holder Chris Nikic will be at the starting line of the 2024 Grandma’s Marathon, the organization announced today. Nikic was born with Down syndrome and was unable to walk well until age 4. Still, recently, he became the first person with
PopROCKS and Chris Kroeze will take the stage Saturday night on Grandma’s Marathon weekend, headlining a two-day “Rock the Bayfront” celebration on what’s expected to be one of the largest race weekends ever. All events are free and open to the public. The weekend festival kicks off Friday
One of the highlights of the agreement is a combined commitment to increasing the event’s sustainability efforts, including Coca-Cola providing compostable cups to use at each of the water stations for both Grandma’s Marathon and the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon.
After eight years as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, Liz Olson announced today that she will not seek reelection for a 5th term. “Representing the people of Duluth in the House of Representatives has been an incredible honor," Olson said in a prepared statement. "But
Registration is now open for the first three Young Athletes Foundation (YAF) fundraising running events scheduled for 2024, the organization announced today. Each of these events saw participation increase in 2023, an encouraging sign to organizers who say these races have an even deeper meaning to the community. “Just by
For the first time in the event’s history, Grandma’s Marathon has cracked the top 10 list of largest 26.2-mile road races in the United States. With 6,690 finishers in its 2023 race, Grandma’s Marathon moved up two spots from a year ago and now sits
Almost five months ahead of last year’s pace, the 2024 William A. Irvin officially reached a sellout on the Friday after Thanksgiving. More than 2,600 participants have signed up for the kickoff event to Grandma’s Marathon weekend, which last year sold out in late April. In both
After reaching its second-earliest sellout ever a year ago, Grandma’s Marathon will open registration for its 2024 race weekend on Sunday, October 1. With three weekend races – Grandma’s Marathon, Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, and William A. Irvin 5K – bringing more than 20,000 participants to Duluth and the
Grandma’s Marathon has been named one of five recipients of the 2023 Facility of Merit Award by the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety & Security (NCS4), the organization announced today. The award, which is being presented this year to five organizations or facilities across several industries, serves as
Three more runners entered a very prestigious club over this year’s Grandma’s Marathon weekend – the 1,000-Miler Award was officially presented following the race to Jim Boatman, Michael Goodoien, and Timothy McCollor. Created to celebrate longevity and commitment of Grandma’s Marathon participants, the award is given to
Grandma's Marathon Executive Director Shane Bauer on the 2023 races and events held last weekend: "It was a record-setting weekend in a lot of ways. I haven’t seen final numbers yet but it’s the first time the weather cooperated for both the runners and the
Dorothy Spencer was presented on Grandma’s Marathon weekend with the 2023 Scott A. Keenan Founder’s Award, the organization announced today. Spencer, already a member of the inaugural class into Grandma’s Marathon Hall of Fame, was honored for her lifetime contributions that have contributed to and embodies the
Ondoro returned to Duluth this year as the defending champion and finished as the runner-up, trailing Barno by 45 seconds and finishing with a time of 2:09:59. This marked the first-ever Grandma’s Marathon in which two men broke the 2:10:00 mark in the same race.
Aaron Pike has become somewhat used to being on top of the podium at Grandma’s Marathon, while it was a new feeling entirely for Jenna Fesemyer as those two were crowned men’s and women’s wheelchair champions on Saturday. Pike won the race for the second straight year