'Great disappointment:' 2020 Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon canceled due to COVID-19

"It is with great disappointment to inform you that the 2020 Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon scheduled for October 4, 2020 will not be held this year.  As you may imagine, it takes a great deal of planning to host a world-class event like ours and we fought and planned up until the last possible moment to make it happen.  After careful consideration of all possibilities for a live event including potential route changes, we could not find a way to safely hold the race and host the great celebration of running LFM has provided over the past 39 years.

During the first week of August, we will be sending an e-mail asking how you wish to be compensated for the cancellation.  We will be pleased to have you commit to joining us for our 40^th Anniversary and will offer you a Free deferral to our October 3, 2021 race OR we refund the majority of your funds as quickly as possible.  Full details for both options will be given so please be on the lookout for that communication.

However, not all is lost.

We knew cancellation was a real possibility as we all saw so many other events cancel so we are excited to let you know that we are putting the finishing touches on a “Virtual” event called: “Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon-Personal Distance Challenge”.  Our goal is to provide an alternative to our live event that you can use to stay motivated for continued training then look forward to completing the weekend of October 3-4^th.  There will be incentives and prizes and you will receive all the details in the same e-mail to be sent out early next month.

We thank you for your understanding as we continue to work hard on providing the best marathon experience possible in 2020.  On behalf of the Badgerland Striders (race producers) and the entire volunteer staff of the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon, we thank you for your choosing and supporting the great tradition of a race “by runners…for runners”.