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Flying Pig Marathon

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Flying Pig Marathon
Flying Pig Marathon logo
DateGenerally the first Sunday in May
LocationCincinnati, Ohio and Northern Kentucky
Event typeRoad
DistanceMarathon - 26.2 mi
Course records2:20:25 - Cecil Franke - 2006
2:34:35 - Tatyana Pozdnyakova - 2002
Official siteflyingpigmarathon.com
Participants36,000+

The Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon is an annual 26.2 mi (42.2 km)[1] race run the first Sunday of May in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded by Robert J. Coughlin, it was first held in 1999, it is the 3rd-largest first-time marathon in the United States. The marathon had nearly 5000 finishers in 2008, and total participation for all weekend events exceeded 30,408 in 2011.[2] The race starts and finishes downtown and also crosses into Northern Kentucky. It is a qualifying race for the Boston Marathon.

History

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Naming

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For many years, Cincinnati was known as "Porkopolis"; this nickname came from the city's large pork interests.[3] In 1988, the city built a park, Bicentennial Commons, to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the city's founding and commissioned British artist Andrew Leicester to create a sculpture for the entrance. Leicester came up with four steampipes, a nod to the city's riverboat history, each topped with a winged pig; the wings are a nod to General Electric Aviation, a major presence in the city.[4][5] Initial reaction was derision, but the city soon embraced the "Flying Pigs", using it as a symbol and a brand.[4] The marathon was named after them.[4][6][5]

Running

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The marathon was first held in 1999 when Elly Rono of Kenya and the University of Southern Indiana (and a future 2:10 marathoner), won in the men's division.

In 2002, overall female winner Tatyana Pozdnyakova of Ukraine set the course record with a finishing time of 2:34:35 (achieved at the age of 47).

In 2006, overall male winner Cecil Franke set the course record with a finishing time of 2:20:25.

In 2011, legally blind runner Amy McDonaugh won the race in the women's division without a guide and with a time of 2:58:14.[a][7][8][9][2]

In 2020, the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, with all registrants given the option of either running the race virtually or transferring their entry to a later year.[10]

Course

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The race course starts in downtown Cincinnati and crosses the Taylor-Southgate Bridge over the Ohio River into Northern Kentucky, where it travels through Newport and crosses westward over the Licking River via the Fourth Street Bridge into Covington. From Covington, the route takes the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge back over the Ohio River into Cincinnati. After looping westward the first leg ends east of downtown in Eden Park, a distance of 6.84 miles (11.01 km). The race course then makes its way east through East Walnut Hills, O'Bryonville, and Hyde Park and ends after 5.16 miles (8.30 km) at Richards Industries on Wasson Road. The third leg goes east to the village of Mariemont before looping back to head towards the river; it ends in Linwood, having traversed 7.67 miles (12.34 km). The final leg is 6.55 miles (10.54 km) to the finish line downtown. The last 7 km (4.3 mi) of the fourth leg follow the Ohio River Scenic Byway (US 52) along the Ohio River, heading downtown toward the finish line.[11]

Other races

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In recent years, the Flying Pig has included a 5K race, a 10K race, and a half marathon and a 2-mile "Flying Fur" event for dogs and humans. The 5K and 10K are held on the day before the marathon. The half marathon starts and finishes at the same locations as the full marathon, and is held on the same day as the full marathon.

Recognition

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In 2024 USA Today named the marathon the best in the US; the newspaper called out the scenic course and the race organizers' sense of fun with the pig theme as being attractive to runners.[12]

Winners

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Key:    Course record (in bold)

Winners by year[13]
Year Men's Winner Time Women's Winner Time
1999  Elly Rono (KEN) 2:21:15  Sommer Settell (USA) 2:58:10
2000  Rudolf Jun (CZE) 2:23:02  Rebecca Gallaher (USA) 2:49:30
2001 2:27:59 2:50:41
2002  Cornelio Velasco (MEX) 2:31:10  Tatyana Pozdnyakova (UKR) 2:34:33
2003  John Aerni (USA) 2:27:42  Lisa Veneziano (USA) 2:57:52
2004  Thomas Lentz (USA) 2:38:07  Pamilla "P.J." Ball (USA) 3:05:52
2005  Tim Rieger II (USA) 2:30:24  Alison Bedingfield (USA) 3:03:40
2006  Cecil Franke (USA) 2:20:26  Norah Shire (USA) 2:56:19
2007  Isaac Barnes (USA) 2:33:36  Leah Peelman (USA) 2:55:56
2008  Andy Martin (USA) 2:30:40  Michelle Didion (USA) 3:05:18
2009  Sergio Reyes (USA) 2:20:37  Autumn Ray (USA) 2:52:23
2010  Brian List (USA) 2:31:55  Cynthia Arnold (USA) 2:55:00
2011  Kieran O'Connor (USA) 2:28:02  Amy McDonaugh (USA) 2:58:10
2012  Sergio Reyes (USA) 2:22:04  Rachel Bea (USA) 2:54:38
2013 2:21:49  Rebecca Walter (USA) 2:53:56
2014 2:27:19  Amy Robillard (USA) 2:55:50
2015  Adam Goloyeske (USA) 2:32:53 2:53:07
2016  Sergio Reyes (USA) 2:26:03  Anne Flower (USA) 2:55:46
2017  Jack Randall (USA) 2:33:43  Kerry Lee (USA) 2:53:47
2018  Aaron Viets (USA) 2:29:36  Caitlin Keen (USA) 2:46:39
2019  Jack Randall (USA) 2:28:58  Anne Flower (USA) 2:49:17
2020 Race canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2021  Alex Gold (USA) 2:26:28  Caitlin Keen (USA) 2:43:44
2022  Zac Holtkamp (USA) 2:27:18  Grace McCarron (USA) 2:50:00
2023  Jason Salyer (USA) 2:27:10  Caitlin Keen (USA) 2:45:34
2024 2:26:01  Olivia Anger (USA) 2:43:23

Repeat champions

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Repeat Winners No. of Wins Years of the Wins
Sergio Reyes 5 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016
Caitlin Keen 3 2018, 2021, 2023
Rudolf Jun 2 2000, 2001
Rebecca Gallaher 2 2000, 2001
Amy Robillard 2 2014, 2015
Anne Flower 2 2016, 2019
Jack Randall 2 2017, 2019
Jason Salyer 2 2023, 2024

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ McDonaugh was "completely blind in her right eye and her vision [was] 23/100 in her left eye with no peripheral sight".[7]

References

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  1. ^ "Certified Courses search results for Course ID OH08014PR". USA Track and Field. Retrieved 2014-10-26.
  2. ^ a b "Kieran O'Connor, Amy McDonaugh win Flying Pig Marathon". Cincinnati Enquirer. Archived from the original on 2011-05-04. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  3. ^ Clark, S. J. (1912). Cincinnati, the Queen City, 1788–1912, Volume 2. The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company. p. 334. Archived from the original on March 27, 2024. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
  4. ^ a b c Ogwude, Haadiza. "How the Flying Pig went from a bar napkin to 'one of the most brandable' races in the US". The Enquirer. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  5. ^ a b "Where does the Flying Pig come from?". EDC :: Engineering Design Center. 2011-08-05. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  6. ^ Monk, Dan (2016-05-01). "Pork producers: How the Flying Pig logo was born". WCPO. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  7. ^ a b "Legally Blind Runner Wins Flying Pig Marathon". 2 May 2011.
  8. ^ "Legally blind runner wins the women's Flying Pig marathon in Cincinnati - GO AMY!". New York Daily News.
  9. ^ "Blind ambition". June 2011.
  10. ^ "Flying Pig Marathon".
  11. ^ "Marathon Course Description".
  12. ^ "Best Marathon (2024) - USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice Awards". 10Best. 2024-04-05. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  13. ^ "Flying Pig Marathon Weekend Previous Results". Flying Pig Marathon. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
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