St. Jude Children's Research Hospital Announced As New Title Partner For 2018 Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon And ½ Marathon

TAMPA, Fla. and MEMPHIS, Tenn., March 16, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series® and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital® announced today a new title partnership of the annual Seattle event. The 2018 St. Jude Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon & ½ Marathon will take place Saturday and Sunday, June 9-10, 2018.

St. Jude is a national children's hospital with a global mission to find new and better treatments for childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. St. Jude treats children from all 50 states, including Washington, and around the world.

"Knowing Seattle is a community that values fitness and healthy living, we are thrilled to expand our relationship with our friends at the Roll 'n' Roll Marathon Series through this event," said Richard C. Shadyac Jr., President and CEO of ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. "This partnership presents a unique way for the Seattle community to rally around a common goal of curing childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases."

Among the anticipated 19,000 participants for this year's event will be St. Jude Heroes who have committed to fundraising for the hospital while they train.

Since the relationship began in January 2016, more than 24,000 St. Jude Heroes have run in Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series races and raised $9 million dollars for the patients of St. Jude and their families. Support from events such as Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series has helped ensure families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because the only thing a family should worry about is helping their child live. 

"We are excited to expand our partnership with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in an impactful way within the Seattle market," said Stuart Selig, Executive Vice President, North America Global Partnerships for IRONMAN. "St. Jude offers a life-changing fitness program for our athletes who want to race for a reason, putting the heart into our Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series events with their St. Jude Heroes program. This strategic partnership is an opportunity for Rock 'n' Roll and St. Jude to make a powerful impact on a community level in the fight against cancer."

Now celebrating its 10th year, the St. Jude Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon & ½ Marathon features a marathon, half marathon, 5K as well as a Health and Fitness expo. Starting and finishing in the heart of Seattle Center – home of the Space Needle – the St. Jude Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon & ½ Marathon will have new courses for 2018, which will take runners through some of the "Emerald City's" best neighborhoods. While taking in the stunning natural beauty that the Pacific Northwest is known for, participants will experience better runner support and community engagement as they move along to more music than ever with live bands performing along the course, new mile-markers that include speakers, themed water stations and race pacers who will be running with mobile speaker packs.

Runners will also have the opportunity to take on the Remix Challenge and earn three medals on race weekend by participating in the 5K run on Saturday, June 9 and the marathon or half marathon on Sunday, June 10.

For more information about St. Jude's Research Hospital please visit www.stjude.org. To register as a St. Jude Hero or help participants reach their fundraising goal, visit stjude.org/heroes.

For more information on the event's weekend activities, please visit www.runrocknroll.com/seattle. For more information on the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series^®, please visit runrocknroll.com. Media may contact [email protected].

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to 80 percent since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude won't stop until no child dies from cancer. St. Jude freely shares the discoveries it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. Join the St. Jude mission by visiting stjude.org, liking St. Jude on Facebook (facebook.com/stjude) and following us on Twitter (@stjude).

About Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series
The Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series^® is the world's largest running series with more than 600,000 runners taking part in over 30 destination events around the world every year. Established in 1998, the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series' simple idea of making running fun has transformed both the U.S. and global running landscape by infusing the course with live bands, cheer teams and entertaining water stations, creating a block-party atmosphere for participants and spectators alike. Race weekend kicks off with a free Health & Fitness Expo showcasing the latest in running gear, sports apparel, health and nutritional information and much more. Events culminate with an entertaining finish-line festival and Toyota Concert Series Headliner featuring some of the biggest names in music, with past performances including Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Aloe Blacc, Pitbull, FloRida, the Goo Goo Dolls and Bret Michaels. Further information about the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series can be found online at www.RunRocknRoll.com and follow @RunRocknRoll on all social platforms.

About IRONMAN
A Wanda Sports Holdings company, IRONMAN operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^®  70.3^® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series^®, Iron Girl^®, IRONKIDS^®, International Triathlon Union World Triathlon Series races, road cycling events including the UCI Velothon^® Series, mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic^®, premier marathons including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, and other multisport races. IRONMAN's events, together with all other Wanda Sports Holdings events, provide more than a million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the company's vast offerings. The iconic IRONMAN^® Series of events is the largest participation sports platform in the world. Since the inception of the IRONMAN^® brand in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^® by crossing finish lines at the world's most challenging endurance races. Beginning as a single race, IRONMAN has grown to become a global sensation with more than 200 events across 50 countries. For more information, visit www.ironman.com.

SOURCE St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Related Links

http://www.stjude.org/