Last week, the Missouri MileSplit team recently received the following press release from the prestigious Festival of Miles Meet Directors regarding an exciting new addition to their lineup of races. Read on for more information about this exciting announcement!
The Festival of Miles Foundation is expanding the event line up for HOKA Festival of Miles - an annual charity track meet held in St. Louis - to include Missouri Mile races featuring top high school runners from Missouri. Big River Running Company, a St. Louis-based run specialty store, will sponsor the two Missouri Mile races, one for each gender.
HOKA Festival of Miles has been a hub for showcasing national running talent while giving back to the community and supporting an athlete in need for more than fifteen years. HOKA came on board as the event's title sponsor in 2021.
"As HOKA Festival of Miles has grown over the years from a local event to a national-level event, we wanted to honor our history and the foundation from which this event was built," said Katie Sutton, Festival of Miles Foundation Board President. "HOKA Festival of Miles was a high-energy, successful, fun and fast event from the start because local runners believed in, participated in and supported the event. Now that the event attracts runners from across the country, we wanted to create space to spotlight runners from our home state of Missouri."
Big River Running Company has been involved in Festival of Miles since the inception of the event in 2008. "As a local company in St. Louis, it has always been an honor to support this homegrown, St. Louis event as it has gained national recognition," said Stephanie Cornyn, Big River Running Company General Manager. "It brings us a lot of joy to support high school runners by properly fitting them for the shoes and gear they need to be successful in their sport. Sponsoring the Missouri Miles is the perfect way for us to extend that support!"
This year's event will take place on Thursday evening, May 30 at Saint Louis University High School. Any high school runner who is interested in participating, whether from Missouri or any state, must fill out an interest form online at https://stlfestivalofmiles.
Kids in kindergarten through 8th grades are invited to participate in the Healthy Kids Mile (grades K-5) or Middle School Mile (grades 6-8). The athletes with the fastest submitted times in the Middle School Mile will be invited to participate in the Junior High Invite Miles. Registration will take place here https://stlfestivalofmiles.
The Festival of Miles Foundation's mission is to promote the sport of track and field and give back to athletes in need. HOKA Festival of Miles is a short-format track meet featuring non-stop action with youth and middle school races, high school races showcasing some of the nation's top talent and pro races featuring Olympic-level athletes. Each year all proceeds from ticket sales go to an athlete/athletes in need.
To learn more visit http://www.stlfestivalofmiles.