Twin Cities Marathon 2015: Route, Course Map, Times, Event Details

The 2015 Twin Cities Marathon begins Sunday, but the main storyline surrounding the 34th annual running of the race at the moment is planned protests.

The St. Paul, Minnesota, chapter of Black Lives Matter is planning to interrupt the "The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America" by marching to protest four separate occurrences of alleged police violence on civilians within this calendar year.

Protest organizer Rashad Turner spoke about the situation and what the advocacy group chapter hopes to accomplish, per Alison Wade of Runner's World:

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Our hopes are that when the marathon runners reach us at the finish line, instead of being more concerned with finishing the marathon, that they've been able to do some critical thinking throughout this week and understand how powerful it would be if we all stood together in solidarity against the injustices that are plaguing our society and plaguing the community right here in St. Paul, Minnesota.

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The hope is the protests are of the peaceful variety and won't interfere with the race itself, which will see approximately 11,000 runners strive for personal glory over the course of a 26.2 miles.

TCMEvents.org provides a look at the course map so that fans can get a gauge of the route.

City mayor Chris Coleman expressed optimism that the protests won't be too worrisome based on how the St. Paul Black Lives Matter chapter has gone about its business in the past.

"While these events have likely inconvenienced some people, the protests have not led to any significant issues, no serious injuries and no arrests," said Coleman, per the Pioneer Press's Tad Vezner. "The St. Paul Police Department has done an exceptional job of balancing the rights of protesters to be heard and the public to be safe."

As KSTP.com's Russell Barnes points out, Black Lives Matter has previously disrupted light rail service for the Minnesota Vikings' home opener. The protest is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. local time, whereas the Twin Cities Marathon gets underway at 8 a.m.

What makes the Twin Cities Marathon itself unique is its signature aquatic scenery. It serves as the foundation of the race's aesthetic appeal and justifies the event's nickname.

Andy King/Associated Press

The path runners will travel on consists of four different bodies of water in the first seven miles after the start in Minneapolis: Cedar Lake, Lake of Isles, Lake Calhoun and Lake Harriet, respectively. A loop around Lake Nokomis then occurs at the approximate midway point, and around miles 16 through 21 the racers will go around the Mississippi River before finishing up in St. Paul along John Ireland Boulevard.

But again, whether the conclusion will fully materialize remains to be seen based on what transpires in the impending protests.

In a report by the Star Tribune's Mary Lynn Smith, some runners have expressed fear for their safety or are concerned that they won't be able to finish the marathon after months of training. Those are some of the factors to bear in mind due to the protest plans—and those can't be minimized.

As long as protests are carried out as has been customary in St. Paul and don't impede the finish line, though, the Twin Cities Marathon ought to go over rather smoothly.