Mercedes-Benz Marathon Postponed Until Spring

VANCE, AL. — Mercedes-Benz U.S. International, Inc. (MBUSI) and Birmingham Marathon, Inc. on Tuesday announced the postponement of the 2021 Mercedes-Benz Marathon Weekend due to safety concerns raised by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The event was set for February, but will now be tentatively rescheduled until for later in the spring.

Event chair Valerie Cuddy said the decision was a difficult one to make, but was decided upon with the best interest of all participants and spectators in mind.

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"The COVID-19 situation is too fluid to accurately predict the conditions we will see in February," she said. "We don’t want to do anything to risk the health and safety of anyone involved as we are also following the lead of the City of Birmingham as they are delaying the approval of city-wide events. And please remember our official charity, The Bell Center for Early Intervention Programs, as we all navigate through this time.”

The race weekend was scheduled for Feb. 19-21, 2021 in downtown Birmingham and the new spring date has yet to be announced.

MBUSI says the decision affects the Mercedes-Benz Half and Full Marathon, the Marathon Relay and the Regions Superhero 5K normally scheduled for the Saturday or Sunday.

Organizers did say a modified Mercedes-Benz Kid’s Marathon sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama will still take place. In this event children run 25.2 miles in weekly increments or in organized sessions at their schools. However, MBUSI said instead of running the final mile on Feb. 20, 2021 in downtown Birmingham, the students will run through organized activities at their respective schools or can run that mile virtually and participants will still receive their finisher medals.

MBUSI President and CEO Michael Goebel said the company's Vance plant has taken extensive safety precautions in the workplace since it restarted production after a 4-week hiatus in March. The postponement of the event, though, comes in line with the automaker's own focus on following public health guidelines to protect the local workforce and mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.

"We could not in good conscience support holding the event in February and potentially create an environment where COVID-19 could thrive," he said. "We will make every effort to help make sure the 20th Anniversary race takes place – whether it happens in 2021 or 2022.”

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