62nd Walter Childs Marathon
Race Date
May 3, 2026
Location
Holyoke, MA
The Experience
The Walter Childs Marathon aka the Race of Champions is held in memory of Walter H. Childs Sr., the founder of the race who died in 1991. The race served as the AAU National Championships and was the Pan American qualifier in the late 60's Nearly 60 years later it is one of the oldest consecutive running marathons in America and the world.
Logistics
Race Day
Sunday, May 3, 2026
Start Time
8:00 AM
Start Location
250 Whitney Ave, Holyoke, MA, 01040
Course Info
Course Type
Loop Course
Terrain
road
Difficulty
Ultra-Flat
Elevation Gain
0'
Net Drop/km
0 m (Flat)
Separation
0.0%
Also Offers
Course Map
3 other maps for this race
Quality Score
4 years running
~107 finishers a year
shrinking
0% returning runners
2 timing sources · 7 photos
runners from 1 state
winner 1:21:26
typical high 64°F
Race Day Weather
5-year historical avgStart (Low)
46°
Afternoon (High)
64°
Pleasant conditions — light layers at start, comfortable by finish
0.3"
Precipitation
10 mph
Wind
76%
Humidity
Historical Finish Times
How 360 finishers actually crossed the line across 4 years.
Most recent
2024
Total finishers
360
Median time
2:05:57
Latest turnout
32
States
3
Turnout by year
2016–2024
Hover the histogram to inspect specific finish times.
Race Photos
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