ING Miami Marathon and Half Marathon® Poised to Host 15,000
Marketing team visits America's largest races telling runners to "picture yourself running Miami this winter"

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Posted Monday, 12 November, 2007

MIAMI - Six years ago, the notion of hosting a large-size, major marathon in Miami and Miami Beach was unimaginable and now the organizers of the ING Miami Marathon and Half Marathon® are forecasting registration numbers to be between fourteen and fifteen thousand runners, walkers and athletes with disabilities. With three months until the January 27, 2008 event, the number of registered athletes has surpassed 6,000, an increase from 4,600 registrants at the same time last year. The 31% spike in registration marks the largest number of participants to have registered three months before the race and organizers expect the number to stay ahead due to the strong marketing effort underway at major marathons nationwide and Florida marathons in December and January.

With an expected field of 15,000 athletes, Miami has become a well known destination for runners around the world looking for a winter event to participate in. As running season peaks from September through November, when the largest races in the U.S. and Canada are held, race organizers have created a marketing plan to continue the boost in registration and attract participants that travel for winter races. Marketing teams from the ING Miami Marathon and Half Marathon® are showcasing South Florida's largest marathon at race expos, reaching half a million runners, spectators, and sponsors at ten races, urging runners to "Picture Yourself Running Miami This Winter."

The marketing effort will be taken to major marathons in Philadelphia and Las Vegas after visiting New York, Washington, D.C., Toronto and Chicago the past month. The campaign has been successful in elevating the events appeal to runners from outside of Florida, in cold climates like the Midwest, Northeast and Canada. At expos, runners are given magnetic photo frames, citrus scented silhouettes of a runner and brochures in line with the "Picture Yourself" theme.

"Visiting these races in major markets allows us to sell Miami to hundreds of thousands of runners from cold climates, Europe, Latin America and elsewhere," explained Danny Elfenbein, Marketing and Public Relations Director, PR Racing. "More importantly, we get to sell them the idea of winter in Miami, the best time of year to run a marathon in South Florida."

In 2007, 68% of the participants came to Miami from outside Miami-Dade County, with 1,200 runners coming from international destinations. Currently, runners are registered from 49 states and 36 countries and registration is expected to increase after expo marketing is done and the race draws near.

The ING Miami Marathon and Half Marathon® is scheduled for Sunday, January 27, 2008. Anyone who registers before November 15 will be able to get a personalized bib with their name on it. Entry fees are $70 for the half-marathon and $95 for the marathon. For more information, call (305) 278-8668 or visit: INGMiamiMarathon.com

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