Race Highlights

• 1981 Inaugural Fairfield Half Marathon attracts nearly 200 runners.
  
  
• 1982 Race field tops 500 runners.
  
  
• 1986 Race field surpasses 1000 runners. U.S. Olympian Nancy Ditz competes.
  
  
• 1989 Hosts the U.S. Women's National Half Marathon Championship. Runner's World rates the race among the top races in the country.
  
  
• 1990 Hosts the National Masters' Half Marathon Championship.
  
  
• 1992 Five Olympians compete including U.S. Marathon Team members Steve Spence and Bob Kempainen, making this their last major race prior to the Barcelona Olympics. Spence sets the men's course record.
  
  
• 1993 Hosts the U.S. Women's National Half Marathon Championship and National Masters' Championship. More than 2000 runners compete. Women's course record set by Elaine Van Blunk in 1:12:06.
  
  
• 1994 Runner's World rates the race again as one of the best in the country, and has every year since. Hosts the National Masters' Championship and race field surpasses 2200 runners.
  
  
• 1995 5-kilometer (3.1 mile) race is added to the schedule. Combined race field exceeds 3000. Gilbert Rutto sets the men's half marathon course record.
  
  
• 1996 Seven Olympians training for the Atlanta Games compete. In an exciting finish, Peter Githuka outkicks Richard Nerurkar by just one second. Men's course record is smashed by over a minute at 1:03:00, and the top three men finish within three seconds.
  
  
• 1997 U.S. Olympian Anne Marie Lauck conquers the women's field.
  
  
• 1998 Daniel Kihara passes 1996 Olympic Silver Medalist Douglas Wakihuri in the last half mile of the race to win and to tie the course record.
  
  
• 2000 Avon's Mary-Lynn Currier becomes the first American winner since 1997. Kenyan Ben Kimondiu repeats as champion winning the closest race ever as the top 4 runners finish within 7 seconds.
  
  
• 2001 Tanzania's John Yuda smashes course record by winning in 62:39.
  
  
• 2005 Russian Firaya Sultanova-Zhban (age 44) repeats to take the women's ½ marathon title.
  
  
• 2006 Retired Fairfield Fire Captain Steve Lobdell returns as Race Director.  Due to construction and with runner safety in mind, both the half marathon and 5K courses were re-worked.  Nathan Kosgei and Naomi Wangui, of Kenya finished 1st in the half marathon.  Adam Mulia of Brooklyn, NY and Amy Fredericks from Stamford, CT topped the 5K field.  Nearly $100,000 given to numerous charities. 
  
  
• 2007 Stratton Faxon became the title sponsor for Fairfield Road Races and a Kid's 1K Fun Run was added to the race events.  2885 runners ran the three races on a spectacular summer day at the beach. 
  
  
• 2008 Named Runner's World "Race of the Month" for June, 2008, a field of over 3300 runners participated in the three races.  
• 2009 Record field of nearly 4,300 runners raise nearly $350,000 for numerous charities.  With humidity below 50% and temperatures in the low 60s at the race start, it was nearly perfect weather.