Parkersburg News and Sentinel Half Marathon and Two Mile Race 2026

Thousands of spectators line Market Street before the Parkersburg Homecoming Festival Parade, with the half marathon finishing directly into that crowd. The Parkersburg News and Sentinel Half Marathon and Two Mile Race is a Saturday morning event in Parkersburg, West Virginia. It features a half marathon, a two-mile run and walk, competitive walking divisions, and wheelchair rim push or hand cycle divisions. The half marathon begins downtown at 8 a.m., with the wheelchair field starting ten minutes prior. The two-mile race commences shortly after from Third and Juliana streets, near the Towne Square Parking Garage. The half marathon serves as the RRCA West Virginia State Championship. Its course departs the city, crosses nearby West Virginia roads, then circles back into the commercial district for a Market Street conclusion. The two-mile race is also an RRCA West Virginia Championship, concluding at Sixth and Market streets. This race includes Company, Family, and School team scoring, calculated from each team’s four fastest participants. Half marathon participants receive a tech shirt, pasta dinner, finisher medal, and a post-race pizza lunch. Two-mile participants get a T-shirt, with dinner and lunch tickets available for purchase by them and their guests. Awards are separated by event; the two-mile ceremony takes place at Bicentennial Park, and the half marathon awards are presented near the finish line before the parade commences.