Phoenix vs St. Louis: Potential hosts for the 2028 US Olympic Marathon Trials

I like both locations, in that they are in regions of the country that have been less represented by the trials in recent history. The dates will line up with a lot of spring breaks in the north, so I can see a ton of people heading south to make it a vacation. St. Louis is in driving distance for a lot of Midwest running fans so I think they would also have a decent turnout. Who knows what the weather will be, I think the big thing is what location will get the most attention. Phoenix?

There is uncertainty about the weather in both cities. St Louis wins as the central location in the country for travel, has Forest Park for a great loop course, a great race history and great race organizers for years now and many enjoyable experiences in entertainment (music, food, the zoo, etc. ) nearby. They put on a great spring marathon festival too, that’s been held for years now. St Louis all the way.

There are many good ways to map out a marathon course in Phoenix. The organizer said he wants to showcase downtown Phoenix and desert landscapes. I'm not involved in the bidding group but here is what my proposal would be for meeting those objectives.

google.com

One Option for a Marathon in Phoenix - Google My Maps

from a random runner

Open link

I don't know how a road race can start within Hance Park. This course starts and ends by the park, on the corner of Central and Culver.

It would start by heading south to downtown. Then west on Washington and swing by the Arizona Capitol. Come back east on Jefferson and run by the Phoenix Suns arena and Chase Field (where the Diamondbacks play). Continue east to Papago Park. Points along the way include Ballet Arizona, the Phoenix Rising stadium, and the S'edav Va'aki Museum.

Once at Papago Park, run by Phoenix Municipal Stadium, the Phoenix Zoo, and the Desert Botanical Garden. Head north to Indian School, then run through the nice Arcadia area and by Arizona Falls. Then north to Camelback and enjoy views of Camelback Mountain. Then go west on Camelback and pass though the Biltmore area. Continue to Central, then head south on Central. Pass by Steele Indian School Park, the Heard Museum, the Phoenix Art Museum, and the core of central Phoenix. Then finish back by Hance Park.

This course would include many landmarks and highlight the best of Phoenix. It would be spectator friendly and look great on television. Most importantly, runners would enjoy it.

it will not be 1 big loop but 4-6 x 4-6mile loops to make it better for spectators.

Laughable if they think Brooksee has the chops to implement a world-class race where the results matter at an Olympic level based on their regularly-scheduled snafus at medium-size city races across the west...

Why you gotta come on here posting lies?

TBH Brooksee and USATF would be a marriage made in heaven

You're assuming Tempe and Scottsdale are going to be in on this as well and that's a pretty large ask . Washington St is flat out ghetto and then running it down to 17th Ave is just asking for trouble. You have included some good landmarks but I just don't see it being feasible for multiple reasons. I bet you'd get some loop course of 7th/Central/7th.

You're right, my proposed course barely crosses into Tempe and Scottsdale. The route could easily be adjusted to avoid those boundary crossings. That's not an issue at all.

When is the last time you've been on Washington St or in downtown Phoenix? You mentioned the zone earlier. That got cleared out over 2 years ago.

I drove the full course this afternoon. Washington from Central west to 17th Ave is completely fine. It's a very nice clean area with beautiful buildings. I did see some homeless people on the corner of Jefferson and 15th Ave though. That could be an issue. I also drove by a "gentleman's club" on 51st St. Would have to reroute the course to avoid that for sure.

The biggest issue is what someone else said about the course needing to be 4-6 x 4-6 mile loops to be better for spectators. I just checked the Orlando 2024 course, and it was one 2.2 mile loop and 3 x 8 mile loops. I didn't remember that. I'll go back to the drawing board.

I live in Phoenix and I can tell you that Phoenix is by far the best choice. March weather is ideal, lows are in the 50-60 F range at marathon start time , with highs reaching the 70 F range in the afternoon. Humidity % is low, and there is a greater than 90% chance of dry , sunny weather. In March, St.Louis still runs the chance of snow, ice storms, rain, and cold temperatures.

Phoenix is also a city ideal for tourism. The pleasant weather lends itself to plenty of opportunities for sight-seeing, outdoor recreation, a vibrant city and nighlife venues, plenty of parking and a multitude of hotel and resort choices.

Phoenix is also a running town, with a strong support from racing organizations, sponsors, and the Phoenix City Government. Additionally, the proposed race course is flat and fast, and will more closely mimic the race course in Los Angeles.

You can't go wrong with selecting Phoenix!

Based on reports I've read, the course would start and end at Margaret T Hance Park near downtown Phoenix, so while not set in stone, I can imagine a course that heads more North, up the Central Corridor. Tempe is also an amazing and beautiful City, so not a bad choice for a Marathon either. Tempe has hosted the Rock and Roll Marathon, now just a Half Marathon, for years, and also an Ironman Triathlon Series.

St Louis has a pretty strong running community that goes back pretty far with the St Louis Track Club, Mike Toolen, and The Big River guys (Matt and Ben). We would love to host and you can bet there would be a strong fan presence. we hosted the national cross country championships back in 2010 or so as well. Hilly, yes. could be cold, could be warm. the weather in StL in March is a total crapshoot though.

I will caveat that I'm incredibly biased as I live in St. Louis and would love St. Louis to host. Ultimately, I don't think any of the below points really matter as it will all come down to who bids the most money (show me an incentive and I'll show you an outcome)

Positives:

1) We have the best "potential" start/finish line with the Gateway Arch. I can hear Paul Swangard saying "today, the The Gateway to the West becomes the Gateway to LA"

2) Strong running culture/community

3) Forest Park is the crown jewel of St. Louis/a great place for running (however, a course that includes both Forest Park and the Gateway Arch would be tough to pull off)

4) It's an affordable place to visit

Negatives

1) Downtown is dilapidated

2) St. Louis City is a challenge to work with (the GO! St. Louis marathon has had 10 different courses the last 10 years and the majority of road races have left downtown for friendly environments across the county)

3) The course will be very hilly unless it's run on a 4ish mile loop in/around Forest Park

4) Flight travel may be challenging. St. Louis has a large Southwest presence but most people flying in will likely need to connect

I like STL PHX and think it would be cool to move it around. But the Olys are in LA and to give as much advantage we should have home court advantage and have the trials in L.A. Elliot Hill Nike CEO has spent $10 Billion in Hollywood on Nike Icon Studios, Nike Virtual Laboratories, and Dark Manufacturing to directly feed LAX shippers. I think we are SOL because USATF Indy has essentially become a Nike sales office.

They can bid if they want to.

Biggest issue for the Trials in Phoenix is cost - with Spring Training, peak winter visitor season, some Spring Break, etc hotels are brutal. The asks from USATF make this such a financial struggle for ANY host (See Boston, NYC, ATL who basically said never again). Phoenix could be great, decent running community and odds of good weather, but trying to get a block of hotels for all things media, athletes, staff, etc is going to make this a crazy pricey venture

True, there is a lot going on in Phoenix in March, which is why it's such a good thing that Phoenix has the infrastructure to support it. Phoenix has hosted the Super Bowl and the Phoenix Open in the same weekend. It can certainly accommodate the Olympic Trials.

The City of Phoenix and the office of Mayor Kate Gallego have also expressed their support for the bid, which strengthens the proposal.

The prices for Phoenix will indeed be higher because it's such a popular place to be in March. That's why I think it's the better option. We're talking about the Olympic Trials for an Olympics hosted in the US! This is a very special occasion. It's not the time to go cheap. It's the time to go all out.

Our athletes and fans should have the best possible experience in the more desirable location at that time of year. Phoenix is the clear choice.