Wave Staff Report
LOS ANGELES — Barely four months after the 2021 race was held, the 37th edition of the Los Angeles Marathon will be held March 20 with about 25,000 runners expected to travel the 26.2-mile Stadium to the Stars course.
The 2021 was pushed back from its normal March date to Nov. 7, but the McCourt Foundation, which stages the marathon in conjunction with the city of Los Angeles, wanted to return the race to its March date this year.
The course will follow the same route it followed last year, starting at Dodger Stadium and ending in Century City on Avenue of the Stars.
This year’s race will feature the Quincy Cass Associates Marathon Challenge, pitting elite men and women marathoners in a race within a race that features a $10,000 prize to the first person who crosses the finish line. To make the challenge competitive to both men and women, the elite women runners will start 18 minutes before the elite men runners. at about 6:40 a.m. Wheelchair racers will begin at 6:30 a.m.
This year’s marathon is reviving the challenge that was conducted in the race from 2004 to 2014.
“We’re thrilled to help bring back this exciting element to the Los Angeles Marathon,” says Quincy Cass Associates CEO Mark Minichiello. “It highlights the talented runners of both the women’s and men’s fields pursuing their high-performance goals, but what makes it really exciting is that anyone can win it.”
Quincy Cass Associates is the oldest independent financial firm in Los Angeles. Founded in 1922, it is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
Minichiello, who has been affiliated with Quincy Cass Associates since 2004, is a dedicated runner, coach and volunteer who has run the Los Angeles Marathon several times, served as a certified coach of the LA Road Runners and helped runners reach their running goals as a marathon pace leader.
“To mark our 100th anniversary in Los Angeles we wanted to give back to the community that has given Quincy Cass Associates so much through the years,” Minichiello said. “I have a deep fondness for the Los Angeles Marathon, and hope the Quincy Cass Associates Marathon Challenge will be the beginning of a new legacy of excitement for runners and fans of the Los Angeles Marathon.”
“The Quincy Cass Associates Marathon Challenge revives an exciting aspect of the elite competition of the Los Angeles Marathon,” said Murphy Reinschreiber, the marathon’s chief operating officer. “We hope this will serve as a platform for increased competition and interest, as well as a way to inspire runners of all ages and abilities.”
The portion of the route that runs through the city of West Hollywood remains unchanged.
The marathon route will guide runners westbound into the city of West Hollywood along Sunset Boulevard at Marmont Lane, just west of Crescent Heights Boulevard. From the Sunset Strip, runners will turn south onto San Vicente Boulevard; then west onto Santa Monica Boulevard; then left on Doheny Drive, where they will enter the city of Beverly Hills at Beverly Boulevard.
The West Hollywood stage of the course comes between miles 14 and 15 of the course.
To ensure the safety of the large numbers of Los Angeles Marathon runners, there will be several street closures in the city from 4 a.m. to 2 p.m.; crews will work to reopen roads to vehicle traffic as quickly as possible as the marathon moves through the city.
Among the street closures are: Sunset Boulevard between Marmont Lane and San Vicente Boulevard; San Vicente Boulevard between Sunset Boulevard and Melrose Avenue; Santa Monica Boulevard between La Cienega Boulevard and Doheny Drive; and Doheny Drive between Santa Monica Boulevard and Beverly Boulevard.
Parking will be strictly prohibited along the marathon route. “No parking” signs will be posted prior to the event. Vehicles in violation will be ticketed and towed at the owner’s expense.
The 2021 race was won by John Korir of Kenya, who completed the course in two hours, 12 minutes and 47 seconds. Natasha Cockram of Wales was the women’s winner, finishing in 2:33.16.
About 13,000 runners took part in the 36th Los Angeles Marathon last November, less than half of the record 27,150 who competed in March 2020, about a week before Los Angeles shut down at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.