Kentucky Derby Festival Race Weekend

The Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon presented by Walmart and HumanaVitality has grown from a small local road race into the largest day of road racing in Kentucky history. Runners from all 50 states and several foreign countries annually complete the scenic 13.1- and 26.2-mile courses that start and finish in downtown Louisville. The Marathon, which debuted in 2002, draws nearly 3,000 entrants. Both college and professional sports are a perennial draw in this northern central Kentucky city that’s perhaps most famous as the home of the “most exciting two minutes in sports,” the legendary Kentucky Derby, the first leg of the thoroughbred triple crown that kicks off the horse racing season on the first weekend in May each year. So it’s fitting that this race helps kick off what is actually a two-week series of events here in Louisville, as the Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon and Mini Marathon takes place the week before the Derby itself, which runs the following weekend. The race sports a course that eliminates some of the hills of past year’s races and showcase more of the city’s historic and tourist-friendly places. Both the half marathon and the full marathon are USATF-certified courses, and the full marathon is a Boston Marathon qualifying course.