Posted: August 30, 2004

Athletics: 2004 Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon/10K Generates More Than $6.8 Million Economic Impact

CLEVELAND, Ohio - (August 27, 2004) - An economic impact study has concluded that the 2004 Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon & 10K generated more than $6.8 million for the greater Cleveland economy. The study of the April 25, 2004 race was conducted by Forward Analytics, a full service market research and strategic planning firm headquartered in Pittsburgh, Penn. It found that the running community is very supportive of the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon & 10K and runners view it as a "must do" event. Now in its 28th year and one of the 50 longest running marathons in the country, the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon & 10K has put ¼ million runners on the streets of Cleveland and given back more than $1 million to charity.

Direct spending by runners and their families and friends during the 2004 race weekend totaled more than $2 million. Spending went for food at restaurants, entertainment, retail purchases, ground transportation, gasoline, lodging and purchases at the health and fitness expo at the Galleria at Erieview.

"I am very pleased by the results of this research, which supports our belief that the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon & 10K is important not only because it draws national attention to the city of Cleveland every year, but also because of the financial impact it has on both the Cleveland and Cuyahoga County economy," said Jack Staph, president of Cleveland Marathon Corp. and executive director of the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon & 10K.

The findings of the study do not include the impact of all the spectators who are not friends and family members of runners. As such, the impact findings should be considered a conservative measure.

Some 6,000 runners participated in the 27th Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon & 10K in April, and more than 5,500 came from outside the city of Cleveland. Forward Analytics' research determined that each runner was accompanied by a mean 2.45 friends or family members. In addition to the direct spending of runners and their families and friends totaling $2,086,891, there was an additional $3,547,715 generated through re-spending of those dollars, known as the multiplier effect.

The marathon also provided a financial impact to the state of Ohio, Cuyahoga County and the city of Cleveland in the form of tax revenue that included sales, hotel, and state gasoline excise taxes. Ohio's piece of the tax pie was $139,010; Cuyahoga County gained $43,945 and the city of Cleveland $17,220.

"We received a 30 percent response rate, which was more than needed to achieve statistical significance," said Candace Campbell, Managing Director of Forward Analytics, who led the marathon impact and satisfaction study.

"The response rate and data both emphasize a strong connection to the event and its host city," added Campbell.

Forward Analytics also surveyed runners participating in the 2004 race about their satisfaction regarding various aspects of the marathon and 10K. "One of the most significant findings coming out of the survey was that by better than a 5-to-1 margin, the runners prefer a half-marathon over the current two-person relay," said Jack Staph. "So, in 2005, we will be replacing the two-person marathon relay with a half marathon event." A new, half-marathon course is currently being designed.

The date of the 2005 event has also been moved from late April to May 22 to coincide with the Rite Aid Health & Beauty EXPO scheduled for the Cleveland Convention Center on Friday and Saturday, May 20 and 21. Because of the potential for warmer weather in late May, the marathon and 10K will have an earlier start. The marathon will now start at 7:00am followed by the 10K at 7:20am.

The economic impact study utilized post-event surveys to collect spending data (and satisfaction levels) among the runners and accompanying friends and family. The Forward Analytics study is available at www.forwardanalytics.com as well as the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon website, www.clevelandmarathon.com, where there is also additional information about registration for the 2005 event in May.