History of the Race

In 1976, the Mississippi Track Club hosted the first Mississippi Marathon, won by Tom English in a time of 2:38:45.  During the early years of this race, the course incorporated portions of Jackson in and around the downtown area as well as the surrounding communities. 

Times for the event continued to drop over the next few years with the male and female records for the event both occurring in the early 1980’s. In 1982, Rodney Pearson ran a 2:23:44; Ginna Hornberger set the female record with a time of 3:04:02 in 1983.

As running grew in popularity, the Mississippi Track Club continued to direct the race with their same mix of hospitality, a great cast of supporting volunteers and a venue for one of only three (3) marathons in the state.  Over the years, not much changed about the event except for the switch of venues to the historic Natchez Trace.  Over time, the race continued to build a strong reputation as a solid, “no-frills” race that offered runners from around the country an opportunity to run a marathon on the beautiful rolling hills of the Trace just outside Jackson.  With the exception of a transition year in 1999 when the event moved from a December to January race, the event was held every year from 1976 to 2006. 

In early 2007, a group of runners from the Jackson area began meeting to discuss how the Mississippi Marathon could be taken to the next level.  With the support of Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi, the Mississippi Blues Marathon and Half-Marathon was born.  Our goal is to present a world-class race, with a focus on the unique music history of the Mississippi Blues.

We hope you will make the trip to Jackson in January to run the inaugural Mississippi Blues Marathon and Half-Marathon.  It’s a great opportunity to run through some of Jackson’s most historic and beautiful neighborhoods, hear some great authentic Mississippi blues, and experience the Southern hospitality that you’ve always heard about.

A portion of the proceeds from this race will benefit the Mississippi Blues Commission.  To learn more about the Commission and the history of the blues, click here .