(c) 2024 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Published with permission.

(18-Dec) — Ben Rosario, who only two weeks ago announced his departure from HOKA Northern Arizona Elite where he had served first as head coach and later as executive director, just announced his next act.  The 44 year-old retired marathoner is resurrecting The Marathon Project, a highly successful, elite-only road race held in the dark days of the COVID-19 pandemic in December, 2020.  The new version of the race will debut as a multi-race festival on December 20 and 21, 2025, at the Wild Horse Pass Resort in Chandler, Ariz., on the exact same criterium-style course that the original Marathon Project was held.  This time both elite and citizen runners can take part.

“We know we have proof-of-concept from 2020, but this version is going to be much bigger and better,” Rosario said through a statement circulated to the media.  “We want to provide something for athletes looking to run as fast as possible that they have never experienced before.”

The 2020 version of the race saw 40 men and 33 women cross the finish line at a time when there were few competitive opportunities.  At the front Martin Hehir and Sara Hall got the victories in 2:08:59 and 2:20:32, respectively.  At the time, Hall’s mark was the second-fastest ever by an American woman (now #5 all-time).

“The roads are pristine, the course is lightning fast, and you can’t beat Chandler in December,” said Hall, 41, looking back on that day. “I’m so excited the race is back and more people will get a chance to chase a PR at this unique event.”

The depth of performances from that day were impressive.  A dozen women ran sub-2:30, and 19 of the top-20 women ran personal bests.  On the men’s side 11 athletes broke 2:11:30 and 16 of the top-20 set personal bests.  Hehir, who has since gone on to become a medical doctor, still remembers the joy he felt that day.  The former Syracuse University athlete would never run faster in a standard marathon.

“I’ll never forget crossing that finish line and joining some of the fastest Americans in history,” Hehir, an anesthesiologist, recalled.

The 2025 Marathon Project will begin with a marathon for top recreational runners called the Gold Wave Marathon on Saturday open to “the top 500 and top 500 women who enter,” the event website said.  All Gold Wave participants will be treated like pros with amenities that include pace groups, an indoor warmup area and bathrooms, bag drop-off at the start and two large fluid stations on each 4.26-mile loop.

A 5-kilometer race, called the TMP 5K, will follow the Gold Wave Marathon on Saturday and be open to all runners of any age or ability.  A professional marathon will follow on Sunday, and Rosario’s team hopes to have “the deepest, fastest marathon in the United States.”  It will be open to 100 elite men and 100 elite women.

Like any new event, some details have yet to be worked out and there will be significant challenges.  For instance, the prize money purse has yet to be announced (Rosario said those details will be disclosed by July 1, 2025), and The Marathon Project will have to compete with other well-capitalized, well-established, fall-season marathons, like Chicago and New York, to get the attention of top athletes.  Those races offer appearance fees and bonuses in addition to generous prize money.

Although not yet determined by USA Track & Field (USATF), it is possible that the qualifying window for the 2028 Olympic Trials Marathon might be open by the time the gun goes off for the 2025 Marathon Project.  For the 2024 Trials, the window opened on January 1, 2022.  USATF might be willing to open that window 12 days earlier than in 2022, and that would surely drive dozens of athletes to The Marathon Project.

PHOTO: Martin Hehir winning The Marathon Project in December, 2020 (photo courtesy of RabbitWolfCreative; used with permission)