Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon

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Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon
VirginiaBeach.jpg
The course traced a path along the oceanfront boardwalk
DateSeptember
Location Virginia Beach, Virginia
Flag of the United States.svg  United States
Event type Road
Distance Half marathon
Established2001
Official site Virginia Beach Half Marathon

The Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon was an annual half marathon road running event which took place in Virginia Beach, United States, on the first Sunday of September between the years of 2001 and 2021.

Contents

Owned and organized by the IRONMAN Group, part of Wanda Sports Holdings, the event was inaugurated in 2001 as part of the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series which began with the Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Marathon three years earlier. [1] Almost 11,000 people completed the race at the first event, over half of whom were women. The elite race attracted high calibre American and international athletes, with Deena Drossin and Shadrack Hoff taking the first elite titles. [2] Around 16,000 runners participated in the 2004 event. [3]

The 21.0975-kilometer (13.1-mile) course began at the Virginia Beach Convention Center within the city, moving on to follow Pacific Avenue and Atlantic Avenue towards the oceanfront. The course then headed south on General Booth Boulevard, looping back north along Prosperity Road near Red Wing Lake Golf Course just after the halfway point. Passing Lake Christine, the route runs back onto General Booth Boulevard at the tenth mile. The course continued north for three miles until the finishing point in the middle of Virginia Beach Boardwalk. [4]

The elite race frequently featured world class runners from East Africa and Asia. The men's race had been won by a Kenyan every year from 2002 to 2013, with champions including former marathon world record holder Paul Tergat and New York Marathon winner Martin Lel. The men's course record of 60:42 minutes was set by James Mwangi Macharia in 2005. On the women's side, six nationalities have reached the top of the podium. These include three-time World Cross Country Champion Edith Masai, World Championships track medalist Werknesh Kidane and New York Marathon winner Adriana Fernández. Edna Kiplagat became the first person to take back-to-back victories at the event in 2007. Werknesh Kidane is the women's course record holder with her time of 1:09:48 hours set in 2005.

In August, 2021, it was announced that the race would be discontinued after that year. Lower registration figures and a higher percentage of runners who local residents rather than visitors traveling from afar to the event led to disfavor with the hotel owners in Virginia Beach as reservations of rooms dropped over Labor Day.Why Virginia Beach's Rock n Roll Half Marathon is Running Out Of Town

Past winners

Kenya's James Kwambai was the 2006 and 2008 men's champion. James Kipsang Kwambai 2008.jpg
Kenya's James Kwambai was the 2006 and 2008 men's champion.

Key:  Course record

EditionYearMen's winnerTime (h:m:s)Women's winnerTime (h:m:s)
1st2001Flag of South Africa.svg  Shadrack Hoff  (RSA)1:02:19Flag of the United States.svg  Deena Drossin  (USA)1:10:07
2nd2002Flag of Kenya.svg  Paul Tergat  (KEN)1:01:59Flag of Mexico.svg  Adriana Fernández  (MEX)1:10:21
3rd2003Flag of Kenya.svg  Martin Lel  (KEN)1:01:27Flag of the United States.svg Mercedes Gil (USA)1:22:07
4th2004Flag of Kenya.svg  Haron Toroitich  (KEN)1:01:55Flag of Romania.svg  Nuța Olaru  (ROM)1:10:50
5th2005Flag of Kenya.svg  James Mwangi Macharia  (KEN)1:00:42Flag of Ethiopia.svg  Werknesh Kidane  (ETH)1:09:48
6th2006Flag of Kenya.svg  James Kwambai  (KEN)1:03:30Flag of Kenya.svg  Edna Kiplagat  (KEN)1:11:08
7th2007Flag of Kenya.svg  Haron Toroitich  (KEN)1:02:20Flag of Kenya.svg  Edna Kiplagat  (KEN)1:11:14
8th2008Flag of Kenya.svg  James Kwambai  (KEN)1:02:11Flag of Kenya.svg  Edith Masai  (KEN)1:12:54
9th2009Flag of Kenya.svg  William Chebon Chebor  (KEN)1:01:29Flag of Ethiopia.svg  Abebu Gelan  (ETH)1:13:43
10th2010Flag of Kenya.svg  Yusuf Songoka  (KEN)1:02:46Flag of Japan.svg  Madoka Ogi  (JPN)1:14:17
11th2011Flag of Kenya.svg  Benson Barus  (KEN)1:02:21Flag of Japan.svg  Yoko Miyauchi  (JPN)1:11:48
12th2012Flag of Kenya.svg  Nicholas Kurgat  (KEN)1:04:45Flag of Japan.svg  Rei Ohara  (JPN)1:13:50
13th2013Flag of Kenya.svg  Henry Rutto  (KEN)1:04:21Flag of Japan.svg  Noriko Higuchi  (JPN)1:15:28
14th2014Flag of the United States.svg  Jeffrey Eggleston  (USA)1:05:28Flag of Kenya.svg  Lilian Marita  (KEN)1:15:30
15th2015Flag of the United States.svg  Elkanah Kibet  (USA)1:05:22Flag of the United States.svg  Laura Thweatt  (USA)1:12:59
16th2016Flag of the United States.svg  Jonathan Grey  (USA)1:04:26Flag of the United States.svg  Ildiko Gaal  (USA)1:24:36
17th2017Flag of the United States.svg  Jeffrey Eggleston  (USA)1:05:54Flag of Japan.svg  Mao Ichiyama  (JPN)1:13:49
18th2018Flag of the United States.svg  Mike Morgan  (USA)1:08:45Flag of the United States.svg  Mary Schneider  (USA)1:24:17
19th2019Flag of the United States.svg  Harrison Ross Toney  (USA)1:09:43Flag of the United States.svg  Megan Cunningham  (USA)1:16:41
20th2021Flag of the United States.svg  Bradley Hodkinson  (USA)1:10:30Flag of the United States.svg  Carter Norbo  (USA)1:19:54

NOTE: Race was not held in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

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References

  1. Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon Brings Music to Virginia Beach. Running USA (2002-08-09). Retrieved on 2012-04-23.
  2. Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon - Virginia Beach - Half Marathon Searchable Results September 2, 2001. Active. Retrieved on 2012-04-23.
  3. Fleming, Audra (2004-09-06). Kenyan and Romanian success in Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon Archived 2004-09-08 at the Wayback Machine . IAAF. Retrieved on 2012-04-23.
  4. 2012 Virginia Beach Half Marathon Course Archived 2012-03-24 at the Wayback Machine . Competitor. Retrieved on 2012-04-23.
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