On Thursday Nov. 6, Indianapolis hosts the 15th largest marathon and half-marathon in the United States. Runners from all over the world compete in the 26.2 mile race for a chance at prize money and potentially a spot in the Olympic trials. The Monumental Marathon is the only marathon Indianapolis hosts, and has over 17,000 participants each year.
“I enjoy going to the race each year to cheer on my mom and all the other runners, as well as see all the fun outfits people wear,” Macy Boehm said.
On top of the joy of running the race, many participants say they look forward to the outfits participants get to wear.
“I wore biker shorts and matching tank tops with my friends,” Nina Brohbery Indy runner participant said.
While most runners often go for the matching athletic clothes, and neon colors some have taken it a step farther.
“The craziest outfit I saw was a guy in a banana costume pushing a stroller full of kids in banana costumes,” Brohbery said.
Even though the race is in November many participants begin training at least five months in advance. According to Indy Runners and Walkers, a run and walking club in Indianapolis, they begin official training for the race in July and continue training three times a week, all the way until the week of the race.
“I used to run alone but ever since joining this club I’ve been inspired to run the marathon annually and always look forward to the fall training we do in preparation for the race,” Andrew Scott said, Indy runner and walkers club president.
Moria Bell, a junior at North Central who runs JV cross country for the school, begins training six months in advance.
“I start official training for cross country at the beginning of June and I will continue training all the way until November,” Bell said.
Part of North Central’s cross country training runners go on long runs once a week that starts at four miles at the beginning of the season and builds until eight miles as the season ends. This training is a crucial part of training that builds runners endurance for the season as well as helps prepare runners for their marathon training.
“After my season ends in October, I will continue training with the varsity runners and up my mileage to prepare my body for the race,” Bell said.
Running a marathon is a very intense race that leaves athletes sore, in pain, and sometimes causes injuries.
“I felt really tired after the race, and was sore for a couple weeks after,”Elle Bryant said.
It’s extremely important to not run a marathon without proper training, fueling, and shoes.
“The race did a good job itself with paying attention to runners’ bodies, there were multiple trainers, and ambulances available in case someone needed medical attention,” senior Talia Ingemi, who ran the race in 2024, said.
Organizers of the race also made sure athletes had enough water throughout the race and had a way to refuel their bodies at the finish line.
“They also had multiple water stations and a lot of food at the finish line which was nice,” Ingemi said.
Many runners who have run the race in previous years said they participated to be able to say they ran a marathon.
“The best part of the race was getting to finish with all my friends, and how accomplished I felt after. It felt so good to say I accomplished such an intense race,” Bryant said.
Running a marathon is something less than 1% of the earth’s population do. And only 0.16% of the population in the United States do.
“I loved how big the crowd was, and how intense it was. It was such good motivation to keep running and finish the race,” Bryant said.
17,000 athletes participate in the race, but double that amount attend to watch the race.
“I have run in the race previous years, and while it was such an incredible feeling, nothing beats the feeling of watching thousands compete,” Boehm said.
Many create signs, give out electrolytes, or even snacks to the athletes running by. Runners are seen hugging their loved ones, crying, or high fiving the crowd.
“Even if you can’t compete yourself, it feels just as incredible watching the race itself, I cried watching my first race and totally recommend it,” Ingemi said.
