indianapolis mini marathon

Indianapolis Mini Marathon organizers have made a statement that OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon has made a swine flu precautions and the runners will use face masks and gloves for H1N1 safety. Indianapolis Mini Marathon starts today on May 2.

The officials of the Indianapolis Mini Marathon have released the following information in regard to swine flu precautions for today's marathon runners.

As a precautionary service the 500 Festival will offer gloves and hand sanitizer to Indianapolis Mini-Marathon volunteers who are in contact with event participants. The 500 Festival is also adding additional hand washing stations for participants and volunteers in Military Park, site of the 500 Festival Post Race Party. Despite these precautions, the 500 Festival cannot guarantee that no one who is participating or otherwise involved in the event has Swine Influenza, so the safest course of action for anyone concerned would be to refrain from participating. In addition, anyone with the flu or flu-like symptoms should also refrain from participating.

For more information on the Swine Influenza A (H1N1) please visit the Indiana State Department of Health http://www.in.gov/isdh/, the Marion County Health Department http://www.mchd.com/ or the World Health Organization http://www.who.int/en/.
OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon

The 33rd Running of the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon takes place on Saturday, May 2, 2009. The Mini has sold-out for the past six years, with 35,000 registrants in 2008, and an additional 4,000 participants in the Finish Line 500 Festival 5K. The Mini-Marathon is the largest half-marathon in the U.S., and overall, the fifth largest running event in America. The 2009 event sold out on December 26, 2008.

The 500 Festival Mini-Marathon Expo, presented by AT&T takes place on Thursday and Friday, before the half-marathon at the Indiana Convention Center. Participants pick up their race packets and visit the booths of more than 80 companies and vendors. The Expo is open to the public, with over 40,000 people attending. On Friday evening, participants can attend the Mini-Marinarathon, presented by Marsh and enjoy camaraderie with other participants and guest appearances by running celebrities.

Following the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon and 5K races, the participants, along with their family and friends which reaches nearly 90,000 people, gather in the Post Race Party at Military Park in downtown Indianapolis. Participants have the chance to relax and receive food and drinks, while enjoying post-race entertainment. The Post-Race Party takes place until 2 p.m. for all participants, and the public is welcome.

The event features live music from great bands, tasty food, your favorite thirst quencher from the Beer Garden, shopping for race merchandise and other goodies, and much more! The Post-Race party is FREE and open to the public.

Indianapolis Mini Marathon Event Highlights
• Last year’s Indianapolis Mini-Marathon and 5K were sell-out events, reaching capacity on the December 26, (nearly 5 months prior to the event).
• Not only the largest half-marathon in the U.S., but the 500 Festival Mini-Marathon received praise in Runners World, listed as one of “A Half Dozen Hot Halfs” in the world, based on participant experience in the 13.1-mile half-marathon.