If you're a 38-year-old woman who runs a 2:19 half marathon, or a 33-year-old man who runs a 28:46 5K, consider yourself a perfect representative of American road racers.
As seen in the graphic below, those were some of the median ages and times for finishers in the four most popular races in 2013: 5K, 10K, half marathon and marathon.
The stats, and many more like them, were released earlier this week by the industry trade group Running USA in its latest state-of-the-sport report. Look below the graphic on average finish times to see the good news about road race participation trends.
As the chart below shows, 2013 was another record year for race participation, with more than 19 million finishers at U.S. events. (Note: The figure is an aggregate of race finishers; the number of individual runners who finished a race is less, because the aggregate includes multiple race finishes by individual runners.)
As has been the case the last several years, a parallel story to the overall growth is the increase in women race finishers. In 2013, women accounted for 57% of U.S. race finishers, a record.
According to Running USA's data, there were a record 28,200 events in 2013, a 7% increase over the 2012 figure.
Scott is a veteran running, fitness, and health journalist who has held senior editorial positions at Runner’s World and Running Times. Much of his writing translates sport science research and elite best practices into practical guidance for everyday athletes. He is the author or coauthor of several running books, including Mo Farah Chases Thieves to Recover Stolen Phone, Advanced Marathoning, and All About 75 Hard. What Is Chappell Roans 5K Time Slate, The Atlantic, the Washington Post, and other members of the sedentary media. His lifetime running odometer is past 110,000 miles, but he’s as much in love as ever.
