Do you 26.2? Annual Kansas City Marathon (and Half Marathon) returns Saturday morning
The second half of 2021 has seen the restoration of some normalcy to Kansas City’s major sporting events, with fans in the stands and venues returning to the vibrancy for which we’d become known long before anyone had ever heard of COVID-19.
The latest example: the Garmin Kansas City Marathon, which dusts off its starter’s pistol at 7 a.m. Saturday morning. The marathon was canceled a year ago because of the pandemic.
Not that there aren’t also some changes, mind you.
For one, this year’s race course begins and ends in front of the venerable Nelson-Atkins Museum of art, an iconic Kansas City landmark that anchors the race’s new course.
“I’d say the excitement is always there every year, but this year is more special,” race director Dave Borchardt said. “Races are such positive, uplifting events. ...
“And that’s the stuff we need after the last year and a half. We’re fired up to get it going, and I think it will be a great thing for Kansas City.”
The previous course was characterized by a long downhill finish at the intersection of Pershing and Main streets. Ongoing KC Streetcar construction made finishing at that location impossible this time, so a new course was devised. It should be easily accessible to KC Streetcar riders as it pushes farther south.
In addition to the new start/finish line, the course extends as far north as 6th Street and as far south as 75th.
Aside from the changes in its route, Borchardt said, the marathon will have the same feel that participants have come to expect.
“Runners always get excited about a new course,” he said. “Before, with the old course, it was like a running tour of Kansas City. We were able to keep that with new course.
“Now we get to start and finish at the Nelson-Atkins, and run through the Plaza, Westport, downtown, City Hall, 18th and Vine, Brookside, Waldo, Ward Parkway and the World War I Museum. We get to keep these things, and the course gets easier.”
The new course, still 26.2 miles in length, was designed to distribute elevation changes evenly for half- and full-marathon participants. And race organizers made sure that the cliché about the finish being “all downhill from here” rings relatively true.
“The last three miles of half marathon are mostly downhill,” Borchardt said, “and the last 5 or 6 miles of the full marathon will be mostly downhill. When runners are tired, the course will be helping them out with gravity.”
The Finish Line Festival will return, but with a new location: at Theis Park. Participants can enjoy free post-race barbecue, beer and live music while following COVID-19 protocols.
The race is Saturday morning, but runners can get the fun started Thursday at the Health and Fitness Expo at Union Station. Recent Olympian Cory McGee will be holding a meet-and-greet at the Garmin booth from 5-6 p.m.
McGee, who finished 12th in the 1,500-meter run at the Tokyo Games in August, will also lead a 3-mile ‘Shakeout Run’ on Friday at 12:30 p.m.
The “Shakeout” is also free to attend, Borchardt said, noting that participants should meet in front of Union Station.
“It’s a really cool opportunity for the average person to run with Olympian. It’s a cool chance for someone who loves running to run with one of the best in the world,” he said.
The Kansas City Marathon is the largest annual fundraiser for the Kansas City Sports Commission & Foundation and WIN for KC, which promotes the value of sports and fitness for girls and women.
This story was originally published October 13, 2021 at 9:58 AM.