Star Wars Half Marathon 2015 Results: Men's and Women's Top Finishers
January 18, 2015
The inaugural Star Wars half marathon went off without a hitch at the DisneyLand Resort in Anaheim, California. Among the plethora of Darth Vaders and Luke Skywalkers, the force was strongest with Nicholas Arciniaga and Jennifer Berry, who charged to wins in the memorable event.
Arciniaga of Flagstaff, Arizona finished with a time of 1:08:13, while Berry of Denver notched a final mark of 1:22:34. The Star Wars official account provides a look at the top finishers following the race:
The hardware for each racer also looked pretty impressive, per DisneyLand's official account:
Every participant who finished the race won a medal, but it must have been even sweeter for the two winners.
Both racers had to trudge through a course that was 13.1 miles in length spanning through the theme park and roads outside the resort. Though it wasn't a full marathon, the competition was still vigorous on Sunday.
Here's a full look at the top finishers on both the men's and women's side of the marathon:
| Star Wars Half Marathon Top Finishers | ||
| Position | Men's (Time) | Women's (Time) |
| 1 | Nicholas Arciniaga (1:08:13) | Jennifer Berry (1:22:34) |
| 2 | Jason Ryf (1:10:56) | Carla McAlister (1:25:32) |
| 3 | Jacob Abrego (1:14:49) | Kellie Nickerson (1:27:03) |
| runDisney.com | ||
Luckily for the runners, conditions were nearly perfect in Anaheim for the race, even with the early start time of 5:30 a.m. PT (8:30 a.m. ET).
Fans of all ages came out to run the course, with several dressing up in full Star Wars garb. Whether they were Jedis or Siths, the participants made the most of the fun event held at DisneyLand.
Cole Horton of StarWars.com caught a Jedi coming to the end of the course with his lightsaber still intact:
The half marathon was just one event on a massive weekend for Star Wars fans. A 5K and 10K were held the day prior along with kids races and a Rebel Challenge set to take place.
Todd Masters, who participated in both the 10K on Saturday and the half marathon on Sunday, spoke about the chance to be a part of the event.
"Being a runner and a huge Disney and Star Wars fan, it’s like this was made for me," Masters said, via Joseph Pimentel of the Orange County Register. "A half marathon is challenging for any runner. You’re working out two hours straight and then you complete a 10K a day before...that’s a lot of miles. It’s more than most people run in a month."
The grueling run was clearly no match for Arciniaga and Berry, however, as they both made their way through the course in record time for the event. Sure, it was the first time the run was held, but they both set the record.
In a year where new life has been invigorated in the franchise, a new tradition was born in DisneyLand. After the success and fanfare of the first event, several more are likely to come for Star Wars fans across the nation.
Fans of the franchise and running alike will have to wait a while to find out if the force, er, um, course is the strongest with them.
*Event info courtesy of RunDisney.com.
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