Photo: WDIO-TV

From WDIO-TV - March 31, 2020

The 44th running of the Grandma's Marathon has been canceled. Officials with the Marathon announced the difficult decision to cancel this year's Grandma's Marathon and events surrounding the marathon on Tuesday. Grandma's Marathon and the Gary Bjorklund Half Marathon had been scheduled for Saturday, June 20. 

According to a press release, the decision comes after careful deliberation by the Grandma’s Marathon staff and board of directors along with medical and public agency leaders in an effort to keep participants, volunteers, partners, spectators and the community as a whole safe during the pandemic and not detract valuable resources away from local health systems.

This is the first time Grandma's Marathon has been canceled since the initial race in 1977. 

“Taking into account all of the planning and preparation that is coordinated within the organization and with partners in the community, unfortunately, postponement was not a viable option,” Shane Bauer, executive director of Grandma’s Marathon, a Minnesota nonprofit organization said in the release. “It is not possible to reallocate necessary community resources to a later date, particularly with the growing uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Race officials say they plan to offer registered runners alternative ideas this year, including a Virtual Race option, discounts on the 2021 Grandma’s Marathon Weekend Races and special offers from some of valued sponsors. More details can be found at https://grandmasmarathon.com/covid19/

The 45th Anniversary Race Weekend will take place next year on June 18-19, 2021. 

The Fitger's 5K originally scheduled for April 18 was postponed until September 12.  Another race that makes up the KP challenge, The Saint Fennessy 4K was canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

To read the original story and see related reporting, follow this link to the WDIO-TV website.  https://www.wdio.com/news/grandmas-marathon-canceled-due-to-covid-19/5688379/?cat=10335