HOUSTON MARATHON COMMITTEE   720 N. Post Oak Rd., Ste. 200   Houston, Texas 77008   713-957-3453   www.chevronhoustonmarathon.com   E-mail: media@houstonmarathon.com

Media Advisory:

Chevron Houston Marathon Race Weekend Earns Gold Level Sustainability Certification for 8th Consecutive Year

Houston (Oct. 4, 2019) – The Council for Responsible Sport announced earlier this summer that the Houston Marathon Committee (HMC) has been awarded the Gold Certification for the eighth consecutive year for its achievements while hosting the 2019 Chevron Houston Marathon and Aramco Houston Half Marathon.

The HMC earned credit on 45 of the best practice standards offered in the Council’s certification program for social and environmental responsibility at sporting events. Certification is achieved by complying with standards across five categories: planning and communications, procurement, access and equity, resource management and community legacy.

“The Chevron Houston Marathon is in its eighth consecutive year of commitment to aligning values to actions through the responsible sport certification,” said Shelby Villalobos, managing director at the Council for Responsible Sport. “This places it just fourth on the list of longest-standing certified events in the world, of the more than 150 certified events spanning 30 states and eight countries.”

The three-day event weekend collected 10,085 pounds of clothing from the course and 2,090 pairs of shoes through shoe donation bins at the Houston Marathon Health & Fitness EXPO presented by Texas Children’s Hospital and Houston Methodist, all of which were donated to the Star of Hope.

“The Houston Marathon Committee values the opportunity it has to continuously create and exemplify new norms for social and environmental impact,” stated Wade Morehead, Executive Director of the Houston Marathon Committee and Foundations. “Achieving our sustainability goals would not be possible without the support from the Council for Responsible Sport as well as our staff, volunteers and community partners.”

Throughout race weekend, the HMC also utilized a partnership with Texas Outhouse’s services to recycle all water used in port-o-lets in order to be more environmentally friendly. Additionally, staff from Hirsch Elementary School served on HMC’s Green Crew where they collected 811.8 pounds of plastic bottles and cans which they used towards PepsiCo’s nationwide school recycling program, Recycle Rally.

“As the movement towards greater responsibility in sport gains momentum, others can and should look to this classic gold certified Houston race as a trailblazer in testing and refining best practices in event sustainability,” said Villalobos.

 

About the Houston Marathon Committee, Inc.:
Established in 1972, the Houston Marathon Committee, Inc. (HMC) annually organizes the nation’s premier winter marathon, half-marathon, and 5K. Over 250,000 participants, volunteers and spectators make Chevron Houston Marathon Race Day the largest single-day sporting event in Houston. A founding member of Running USA, the HMC conducts IAAF rated events that retained Gold Certification from the Council of Responsible Sport and was awarded the AIMS Green Award for industry-leading sustainability initiatives. Race Weekend generates over $50 million in economic impact for the region annually. In 2016, the Run for a Reason Charity Program raised $2.3 million, while the Houston Marathon Foundation supported youth and community running initiatives. Televised annually by broadcast partner ABC13, 2016 was the first time that the event was syndicated live nationally and internationally on ESPN3 and the Longhorn Network. Host to 16 U.S. Half Marathon Championships since 2005 and the 1992 women’s Olympic Trials Marathon, the HMC also conducted the 2012 men’s and women’s U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon.

For more information, visit www.chevronhoustonmarathon.com.

 

About the Council for Responsible Sport:

The Council’s vision is a world where responsibly produced sports events are the norm and its mission is to provide objective, independent verification of the socially and environmentally responsible work event organizers are doing and to actively support event organizers who strive to make a difference in their communities. The current version of the Council’s Certification standards (v.4.2) was developed by an outside working group of both sustainability and sport industry experts, reviewed by a wide range of stakeholders throughout 2013 and implemented in January 2014. www.CouncilforResponsibleSport.org