FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Thousands of runners from different states and countries come together Sunday morning for a marathon in Fort Lauderdale.
The 19th annual Liquid Youth Fort Lauderdale Running Festival took runners along A1A in Fort Lauderdale, with some amazing views of the ocean.
“We have a lot of out-of-town participants,” said race organizer Josh Stern. “I would say 75% to 80% international. We have probably 47 states represented here today, 15 countries.”
While many rest and relax on Sunday, these runners woke up dark and early to take on a 5K, a 10K, a half marathon, or a half marathon relay, each with their own rituals and mental games to get through the miles.
“I tend to look at a person who is running in front of me, and as long as I’m running at the same speed as them, I’m ok,” said participant Jake Schuman.
Liquid Youth is the main sponsor, hence the name of the race.
It’s a new wellness sparkling collagen beverage that just hit the market.
But the real inspiration comes from the people.
A group of South Florida teachers hope their students see them out there leading by example.
“Don’t give up on what you are doing, right?” said teacher Jackie Grasinger . “It can seem really hard, but the more you practice to get there. Dedication is a big deal and sometimes things are hard but you can do hard things.”
A group of almost 120 people came down for the race all the way from New York.
“With the shutdown going on, a lot of these people their flights got cancelled,” said Krista Jones from Sparrow’s Nest. “We are all out NYC airports, some of them drove down, some of them had to go on flights in other states, so it took a lot for them to get here, but it’s that important to them.”
It’s important to them because they are running for a great cause.
“That have each raised between $3,000 and $4,000, more than $325,000 to feed people in the Hudson Valley in New York who are facing a cancer diagnosis.”
As the hours went by, one by one, they crossed the finished line exhausted, sweaty, elated and proudly wearing their new medals.
Copyright 2025 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.
