U.S. women’s soccer stars Hope Solo, Abby Wambach and Alex Morgan will swap their cleats and shin guards for running shoes and singlets on Sunday, October 9 as the teammates partner with Bank of America and the company’s “Let’s Run Together” program during the 2011 Bank of America Chicago Marathon. The bank today launched “Let’s Run Together” which celebrates the partnerships, connections and support systems that come together each year to stage and participate in this world-class event, and by doing so make opportunity possible for economic growth, greater support for charities and motivation for thousands of runners who positively impact others.
The new program includes a special charity relay where 13 runners from Chicago and around the country will be chosen to run together with the U.S. soccer trio for charity during the 34th Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Let’s Run Together also includes an integrated marketing campaign featuring Chicago-based athletes whose emotionally moving stories embody the idea of running together.
“As professional athletes, we know that teamwork is very often at the heart of our individual success,” said Hope Solo. “By participating in Bank of America’s Let’s Run Together program, Abby, Alex and I hope to encourage thousands of individuals to embrace the idea of partnership as a way of making a difference in their communities.”
“Just as runners rely on the support of family and friends and often run for a personal motivation or a special cause, we’re grateful for the partnership we have with the city and state to stage an event that does so much for the local economy and the nonprofit community,” said Bank of America Illinois Market President Tim Maloney. “That’s why we’re dedicating this year’s race to the theme, Let’s Run Together.”
Marathon as an economic boost in Chicago
According to the most recent report released today by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Regional Economics Applications Laboratory (R.E.A.L.), which has studied the race impact on Chicago for several years, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon contributes nearly $172 million to the local economy. Drawing participants from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and more than 100 countries, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon attracts new visitors to Chicago during a traditionally down period of tourism for the city. In fact, more than 10,000 registered participants reported that running the 2011 Bank of America Chicago Marathon would be their first visit to Chicago and the sole purpose for their visit, with 7,500 from 109 different countries.
This year’s race reached the 45,000 participant capacity in a record 31 days, indicating the event’s continued strength as a draw for visitors from around the world who will enjoy the city’s hotels, restaurants and entertainment.
Let’s Run Together Charity Relay
To apply for Bank of America’s Let’s Run Together Charity Relay, individuals 18 and older may visit facebook.com/chicagomarathon to complete an entry form where applicants will be asked to explain how they would make opportunity possible in their community with a charitable contribution from Bank of America. A select panel of judges from Bank of America and the Bank of America Chicago Marathon will announce the complete 13-member Let’s Run Together Charity Relay team in September.
Each of the relay team participants will run a two-mile leg of the Chicago Marathon, with celebrity captains and U.S. women’s soccer stars Hope Solo, Abby Wambach and Alex Morgan, culminating with the entire relay team running together across the finish line. For their participation, each relay team member will be awarded a trip for two to the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, along with a $5,000 contribution to their charity of choice.
The Let’s Run Together Charity Relay team is representative of the thousands of people who will run the 2011 Bank of America Chicago Marathon for approximately 160 local, national and global charities. Last year, approximately 10,000 registered runners raised a record $12 million for 150 charities, filling a gap with many organizations struggling to keep up with growing demands for services as a result of the slow economic recovery. Since its inception in 2002, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon’s charity program has generated nearly $60 million in nonprofit contributions.
“The opportunity to captain this relay team and run together with people from Chicago and across the U.S. is a unique and exciting way to celebrate teamwork and partnership and to make a positive impact in our communities, both in Chicago and across the country,” said Abby Wambach, forward for the U.S. women’s soccer team.
Integrated marketing support
Bank of America’s Let’s Run Together program will be supported with TV, print, out-of-home advertising, and social media, along with special displays on Bank of America ATMs, in Chicago-based banking centers and on the city’s renowned mural wall along the Kennedy Expressway at North Avenue.
A number of local, Chicago-based residents participating in the Bank of America Chicago Marathon will be featured in the new advertising. Each was chosen for their spirit of partnership and how they embodied the “Let’s Run Together” theme. Among the participants and their network of supporters featured in the new campaign include:
- Dani Chitwood is supported not only by her husband, but by all the members of Team World Vision, which provides underprivileged children in Haiti and Africa with clean drinking water. More than 1,000 runners in this year’s Bank of America Chicago Marathon will be running along with Chitwood to support Team World Vision.
- Randy Burt is a 61-year-old member of the “Chicago Alumni Running Group,” a community of nine runners who have completed all 33 Bank of America Chicago Marathons. The members of the group meet each year at the marathon and support each other via e-mail throughout their training.
- Ingrid Garcia grew up in the Pilsen neighborhood in Chicago and, after a difficult period in her life, used running to bring joy back into her life and reconnect with the community in which she lived. Now she runs to raise money for nonprofits that benefit and support Pilsen. She is supported by a large group of friends, family and colleagues from nonprofit organizations.
About Bank of America Chicago Marathon
In its 34th year and a member of the World Marathon Majors, the 2011 Bank of America Chicago Marathon will start and finish in Chicago’s Grant Park beginning at 7:30 a.m. on October 9. In advance of the race, a two-day Health & Fitness Expo will be held at McCormick Place Convention Center October 7-8.
Contacts:
Diane Wagner, Bank of America, 1.312.992.2370
diane.wagner@bankofamerica.com
