Philadelphia Marathon Secures First Ever Title Sponsor
October 6, 2013
The Philadelphia Marathon will feature a new title sponsor with Gore-Tex technology coming on board.
One of the city’s premier events will have a new official name, the Gore-Tex Philadelphia Marathon.
The marathon’s association with Gore-Tex “is a winner, clearly, for us,” Mayor Michael Nutter said, because it “raises the city’s profile across the nation and world.”
The marathon has never had a title sponsor since its debut in 1994. Gore-Tex will pay a total of $600,000 to have the honor for three years.
Gore-Tex is a product line manufactured by W.L. Gore & Associates in Delaware and used in apparel, including shoes, that keeps out moisture while allowing heat and sweat to escape, said Gore-Tex executive Kirk Christensen.
The theme for the three-day festival beginning Nov. 15 will be “20 years for the love of running,” the mayor said.
It will include a health expo that Friday at the Convention Center, and an 8K run and a children’s fun run that Saturday, and will culminate that Sunday in a full marathon and a half-marathon.
In the wake of the April 15 Boston Marathon bombings that killed three people and injured hundreds, security will be a primary concern.
Just as the city did in May’s 34th annual Broad Street Run, “we will take the necessary measures to make sure that folks are safe,” Nutter said.
