Half Marathon

A half marathon is, as the name implies, half the length of a full marathon. A marathon is 26.22 miles; a half marathon is 13 miles and 192.5 yard. Considered less challenging or demanding than a marathon, a half marathon is a popular way to promote physical fitness and to encourage a sense of community without discouraging amateur runners. Throughout the world, many cities and even towns hold organize half marathons. Sometimes, half marathons are included in a marathon weekend package, other times, half marathons run on their own. The city of Austin, for example, has both a full and a half marathon taking place on the same weekend. Chicago, Cincinnati and Washington, also, organize the two races as part of the same event.

Half marathon races occur all over the world. There was even a World Half Marathon Championship held annually at various venues around the world. The International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAFF) organized the event from 1992 to 2005. The event took place in Oslo, Norway in 1994, Veracruz, Mexico in 200, New Delhi, India in 2004 and Edmonton, Alberta, Canada in 2005. In 2006, the event became the IAFF World Road Running Championship.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada has its own half marathon. The Scotia Bank sponsors the Vancouver Half Marathon. The 2007 Half Marathon in Brooklyn, N.Y., ran in April with 1,800 runners finishing the race. The Moab Half Marathon takes place in Moab, Utah. The half marathon schedule for this community includes two: Canyonlands, in March and the Other Half, in October. The Colonial Half Marathon and the Grand Island Half Marathon occur in the early months of the year. The Colonial Marathon, sponsored by Anheuser Busch, Inc. happens in February, while the Grand Island Half Marathon takes place somewhat later, in May.

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The Colonial Half Marathon also has something in common with the Mercer Island Half Marathon. Both half marathons are associated with their local Rotary Clubs. This characteristic is common among both half marathons and marathons where many participants run to raise money for charitable causes. This also applies to both the Disneyland Half Marathon in the United States, and the Reading Half Marathon, in England.

If you glance at a half marathon calendar of events, you will discover the Disney Half Marathon transpires in September, while Asics Reading Half Marathon occurs in March. In fact, half marathons occur across the country and the globe throughout the year with a concentration in the spring and fall months.