Runners at Los Angeles Marathon Can Get a Finisher Medal After Only 18 Miles

Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Supported by SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Los Angeles Marathon Runners Can Get a Finisher Medal After Only 18 Miles The decision to award medals to runners who do not complete the entire 26.2-mile race comes as temperatures are set to reach into the 80s on Sunday. Some marathoners disagreed with the change. Listen · 4:05 min Share full article By Claire Fahy March 7, 2026, 3:45 p.m. ET The story goes that in 490 B.C., Pheidippides, a messenger, ran 25 miles from Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victory over invading Persians. His reward for this herculean effort? Death. By overexertion. But as it turns out, in 2026, he might have had to run only 18 miles. That would at least be the case in Los Angeles, where organizers of the annual 26.2-mile marathon announced this week that runners could turn off at mile 18, head to the finish line and, for the first time, still collect a finisher medal. Organizers cited the weather for race day on Sunday, with high temperatures set to reach into the 80s, as the reason for the new option — available for this year only. About 26,000 had registered to run, according to the ASICS Los Angeles Marathon website . “There is no shame in making a smart decision for your body,” the website read. The decision has been met with a mixed reaction among runners. It comes as rising temperatures present challenges for race organizers around the world, when many regions are coping with the effects of climate change. In 2023, the Twin Cities Marathon in Minnesota was canceled outright after the temperature was forecast to reach 91 degrees. And in recent years, in hot places like India, organizers of races have moved up start times to avoid heat and humidity . A January report from the World Economic Forum on the economic factors affecting sporting events found that “extreme weather events such as heat waves, flooding, storms and wildfire smoke are increasingly forcing event cancellations, rescheduling and venue closure...