From Australia to Singapore, Runners from 10 Countries and 48 States head to 9th Annual Louisiana Marathon

January 7, 2020

Louisiana Marathon readies to welcome thousands

Baton Rouge, LA. – Now in its ninth year, The Louisiana Marathon is expecting to draw close to 8,000 runners & walkers to Baton Rouge. Projections for the 2020 event include runners from nearly all 50 states and as many as 10 countries. Starting on January 17^th the expo opens at the Raising Canes River Center then continues through the weekend with two-days of running, walking, and celebrating healthy living at the Finish Festival near the State Capitol.

“It’s become the premier event,” says Pat Fellows, who helps organize the annual marathon. “People know what they’re getting—a great course and a great post-race party.” Previous studies indicate that the Louisiana Marathon weekend generates between $2 million and $4 million in economic impact each year. “We’ve sold out every downtown hotel every year,” Fellows says.

The event includes distances for every age & ability. Saturday, Jan. 18^th starts with the Ochsner 5K (3.1 miles) & Ochsner Quarter Marathon (6.55 miles) and is followed by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Kids Marathon (1 miles). Sunday features the half marathon (13.1 miles) and the full marathon (26.2 miles). This year the event has joined the second edition of the Abbott WMM Wanda Age Group World Championships in 2021 as a qualifying race.

Launching in Sept. 2018, the Abbott World Marathon Majors Wanda Age Group World Rankings aims to raise awareness of the sport of marathon running by highlighting the achievements of age-group marathon runners, that otherwise might go unnoticed.

The weekend also hosts the Louisiana Farm Bureau Insurance Corporate Wellness Challenge creating a culture of health and wellness in the workplace. Categories include the Top 3 teams from companies of 1-99 employees, 100-999, and 1000+.

The 9^thannual Louisiana Marathon will take place on Jan. 17^th – 19th, 2020 in downtown Baton Rouge. For more information about registration and other details, please visit: http://www.thelouisianamarathon.com

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ABOUT THE LOUISIANA MARATHON

Founded in 2012, the Rendezvous running festival is scheduled for Martin Luther King Jr. weekend and takes place in Louisiana’s capital city, Baton Rouge. As a multi-race format there’s a race for everyone:

marathon (26.2 miles), half marathon (13.1 miles), quarter marathon (6.55 miles), 5K (3.1 miles) and a Kids Marathon (1 mile). Each year friends, family, and curious spectators line up along miles of picturesque roadways, filled with inspiring Louisiana sights and sounds to cheer on runners from 50 states and more than 32 countries. The Louisiana Marathon course takes runners from downtown Baton Rouge through the University Lakes, the Louisiana State University campus, and through historic rivertown neighborhoods. To register and for more information: http://www.thelouisianamarathon.com

ABOUT OCHSNER BATON ROUGE

The Greater Baton Rouge region is home to Ochsner Medical Center – Baton Rouge, a full-service, 150-bed facility and 13 Ochsner Health Centers across Ascension, East Baton Rouge, Iberville, Livingston and Tangipahoa Parishes – including Ochsner Cancer Center – Baton Rouge. Nearly 2,000 employees serve our patients in the Greater Baton Rouge area, including more than 200 physicians and Advanced Practice Providers whose collective dedication to patient care is recognized for quality excellence by Becker’s Hospital Review, Healthgrades, Truven Health Analytics and Leapfrog.  Ochsner Baton Rouge is a part of Ochsner Health System, Louisiana’s largest non-profit healthcare delivery system.  Ochsner is the only Louisiana hospital nationally recognized by U.S. News and World Report as a “Best Hospital” across two specialty categories caring for patients from all 50 states and more than 70 countries worldwide each year. For more information, please visit ochsner.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

ABOUT LOUISIANA FARM BUREAU INSURANCE

For 69 years, the Louisiana Farm Bureau Insurance Companies have protected families across the state by providing home, auto and life insurance. Protecting the people of Louisiana is what’s important to us. Real Service. Real People.™

ABOUT ABBOTT WORLD MARATHON MAJORS

The Abbott World Marathon Majors (AbbottWMM) is a series of six of the largest and most renowned marathons in the world – Tokyo Marathon, B.A.A. Boston Marathon, Virgin Money London Marathon, BMW BERLIN-MARATHON, Bank of America Chicago Marathon and TCS New York City Marathon.

Encompassing an annual series for elite runners and elite wheelchair athletes, AbbottWMM also applauds the achievements and passion of everyday champions from around the world. The new AbbottWMM Six Star System is an online results hub that celebrates every runner who has completed from one to six of the races in the series and encourages them to ‘Reach For The Stars’.

The AbbottWMM also launched the AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings in 2018 and the first AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Championship race will take place at the Virgin Money London Marathon, April 2020. Series 2019/2020 will feature more than 175 races with the world championships being held in Spring 2021.

For more information,visit www.Abbottwmm.com

ABOUT ABBOTT

Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic medicines. Our 103,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries.

Connect with us at www.abbott.com, on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/abbott-/, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Abbott and on Twitter @AbbottNews and @AbbottGlobal.

ABOUT WANDA SPORTS HOLDINGS

Wanda Sports Holdings is the world’s leading sports business entity. Founded to capture the opportunities in the global sports industry and to contribute to the prosperous international sports landscape – in three key areas: 1) Spectator Sports (media and marketing business), 2) Participation Sports (active lifestyle business), 3) Services (digital, production and service business). Wanda Sports Holding incorporates the international sports marketing company Infront Sports & Media, the iconic endurance brand IRONMAN®, and Wanda Sports China. The headquarters are in Guangzhou, China.