| AJC Peachtree Road Race AJC Polar Opposite Peachtree Road Race | |
|---|---|
 Logo for the "south" race unveiled January 2016. | |
| Date | January (north) July 4th (south) |
| Location | Atlanta,Georgia, United States |
| Event type | Road |
| Distance | 10 kilometers (6.2 mi) |
| Primary sponsor | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |
| Established | July 4, 1970; 54 years ago (1970-07-04) |
| Course records | South: Men: 27:04 (1996) Joseph Kimani Women: 30:21 (2019) Brigid Kosgei North: Men: 34:35 Lars Pöttgen (2025) Women: 36:25 (2025) Laura Pifer |
| Official site | Official website |
| Participants | 60,000 |
ThePeachtree Road Race (brandedAJC Peachtree Road Race for sponsorship reasons) is a series of two10-kilometer runs held annually inAtlanta, once during the first weekend of January and the other onIndependence Day. They are held on the same course in opposite directions, similar to theComrades Marathon in South Africa, although unlike the Comrades, the "north" (up) and "south" (down) versions are run in the same year.
The "South" (running down) Peachtree was founded in 1970 and has been the world's largest 10k race,[1][2] since the late 1970s.[3] The race has become a citywide tradition in which over 70,000 amateur and professional runners try to register for one of the limited 60,000 spots. The event also includes awheelchair race (known as theShepherd Center wheelchair division), which precedes the footrace. In recent years, the race also has a special division for soldiers stationed in theMiddle East. The race attracts some of the world's elite 10K runners and has served as both the United States' men's and women's 10K championship.
Children can participate in the Peachtree Junior 1 mile run or 50m Dash, held on July 3 in Piedmont Park.
The "North" (running up) Peachtree, officially theAJC Polar Opposite Peachtree Road Race was announced by the Atlanta Track Club on October 10, 2024. The inaugural was held on January 4, 2025 and will be scheduled for the first Saturday of the new year. As the name implies, the course is run in the opposite direction of the more familiar southern race, from 10th Street at Piedmont Park to Lenox Square.[4]
The AJC Peachtree Road Race was started in 1970 by theAtlanta Track Club. The first year, 110 runners ran from the old Sears building at the corner ofPeachtree Street and Roswell Road to Central City Park (nowWoodruff Park). The race was sponsored byCarling Brewery. The next year, the race increased to 198 runners. Organizers used the sponsorship money to purchaseT-shirts but underestimated the number of participants. T-shirts were given out to the first finishers, until they ran out. In 1972, the organizers ordered only 250 T-shirts but 330 runners ran the race. In 1974, the event grew to 765 runners; in 1975 there were over 1,000 runners.[1]
In 1976, Carling Brewery dropped its sponsorship of the race andThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution began sponsoring the race, bringing it added coverage and popularity. That year over 2,300 runners competed. In 1977 over 6,500 runners competed, overwhelming the capacity of Central City Park. As a result, in 1978 the course was moved to starting at Lenox Square and finishing atPiedmont Park. In 1979 the race attracted over 20,000 runners. In 1980, the number of participants was limited to 25,000 runners, which continued until 1990. In 1982, theShepherd Center wheelchair division was formed for the race.[1]
The race became so popular that by 1989, the race reached capacity in only nine days and Atlanta Track Club increased the limit to 40,000 in 1990. In 1992, it expanded to 45,000 runners; in 1995, it expanded to 50,000 runners, followed by a 10% expansion in 1998 to 55,000 runners; it would not be until 2011 that the capacity was expanded to 60,000.[1]
The AJC Peachtree Road Race has become an event important in Atlanta culture. In addition to the 60,000 participants, there are approximately 150,000 observers who line both sides of the entire course to cheer and support the runners.[5] Some runners deliberately wear costumes, many of which are patriotic (due to the event's occurring on Independence Day). The entire race is also televised onWXIA-TV.[1]
The race hosted the USA Men's 10 km Championship in 2007.[6]
With the entire north Georgia region facing historic drought conditions in 2008, water conservation measures were enacted prohibiting outdoor watering of plants and lawns. As a result of thewatering ban, the City of Atlanta decided to prohibit large festivals (over 50,000 people) from using Piedmont Park in 2008 in order to protect the grass lawns which could not be watered. Displaced events included the Atlanta Pride, Jazz, and Dogwood Festivals as well as the Peachtree Road Race which traditionally used Piedmont Park for the finish line of the race and distribution of T-shirts.[2] The AJC Peachtree Road Race considered moving the finish area toGeorgia Tech, but Georgia Tech refused, citing safety concerns.[7] On February 19, it was announced that the race finish line would be at the intersection of Juniper Street and Ponce de Leon Avenue in Midtown. Runners then walked three more blocks to theAtlanta Civic Center parking area where the awards stage, family meeting area and sponsor village were located.[8] The race returned to its previous course in 2009.
Starting in 2009, and in association with Atlanta Track Club, registration applications began to be accepted online on the Active.com site starting on the third Sunday in March. Controversy ruled over the 2009 registration, as over 800 complaints were filed because of server failures by the outsourced registration. The 45,000 applications sold out within hours.[9]
The following Sunday, applications for the 10,000 slot lottery are published inThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution. These slots are randomly selected from remaining applications post-marked by March 31.
Atlanta Track Club experimented in November 2008 at The Weather Channel Atlanta Marathon and Half Marathon with implementation of the ChronoTrack D-Tag transponder system, a disposable tag system. Following its success, the organization announced that starting with the 2009 Peachtree, all runners—not just the elite and timegroup 1 runners—will be timed. Doing this will help with positioning runners for future Peachtree events.[10]
Online registration for the 2010 PRR opened on Sunday, March 21, at 1:00 pm. The first 45,000 online applicants receive race entry. Additionally, a paper application appeared in the March 28AJC. 10,000 entries were to be randomly selected from all paper applications received. The online spots were filled in less than five hours.[11]
In one of the biggest changes seen in race history, starting assignments for all participants will be performance-based. Once the top-seeded and sub-seeded runners start, timegroups 1A, 1B, and 2-9 have been replaced with start waves A-W[12] (19 in total, with letters I, O, Q and V omitted). Applicants are able to submit results from an official race (run on aUSATF-certified course), run on or after March 1, 2008, of distances of 5 miles, 10K, 10 miles, the 1/2 marathon, and for the first time, the shorter 5K distance.
Atlanta Track Club switched to an exclusive lottery format online for the 2011 Peachtree. Most of the 60,000 positions were determined by a lottery draw, with selected exceptions for elite invited athletes, the members of the organizing club, and those who have run ten or more consecutive Peachtree Road Races, all of which were allowed automatic entry. Also, those who pay $150 for the organizers' charity would be automatically entered.[13]
The March 15 opening of lottery and Atlanta Track Club member registration occurred just four days after theRudy GobertCOVID-19 positive test at an NBA game that caused a shutdown of sport in the United States. The resulting lottery and club member registration only drew 45,000 entries, with the race only was three-fourths full by the traditional lottery deadline of March 31. Atlanta Track Club cancelled the drawing, awarding all 45,000 entries an automatic entry into the Peachtree.[14]
On May 1, 2020, the Atlanta Track Club announced the cancellation of the Invesco QQQ Half Marathon usually held on Thanksgiving Day and will instead hold the Peachtree on November 26, 2020, a byproduct of the coronavirus pandemic. A second round of member registration will be held in September, followed by registration to fill out the field later in the month, for the November date.[15]
The race was officially cancelled in August 2020, which the Atlanta Track Club used to move two other races that were to be part of the Triple Peach outside Fulton County, which was under restrictions imposed by the county, and into closed-course motor racing circuits (which are private property) outside the county. The PNC 10 Miler in October moved toMichelin Raceway in Hall County and the 2021Atlanta Marathon was relocated to the perimeter roads and parking lots surrounding, and finishing with laps inside,Atlanta Motor Speedway in Henry County.[16][17]
The Atlanta Track Club announced in January 2021 that the 51st Peachtree Road Race would be held July 3–4, 2021, with runners being assigned to either the July 3 or July 4 wave. The two-day event was held on its traditional course.[18]
Changes were made to the Peachtree Road Race for 2025. During the 2024 AJC Peachtree Road Race, it was announced after four years without a lottery, demand returned to pre-pandemic levels and the Peachtree lottery draw returned. A one-week span from July 4–11 allowed participants to enter the race without being put in the lottery.[19]
On October 10, 2024, the Atlanta Track Club meeting where the 2025 schedule for the organisation was announced, the new "north" version of the Peachtree, the AJC Polar Opposite Peachtree, was announced. It is scheduled for the first weekend of January, with the course going in the opposite direction, similar to the Comrades Marathon in South Africa.[20] Registration for that race was started November 1, 2024, and sold out in less than six hours. In keeping with the Peachtree Road Race tradition, finishers receive a hooded sweatshirt. It was announced on January 16, 2025 that registration for the 2026 "north" Peachtree will be open to Atlanta Track Club members for one day only in February and registration for the general public will begin on July 4, 2025, after the end of the "south" Peachtree.
The Peachtree Road Race has a list of regional races that serve as qualifiers for the race.[21]
January
February
March
April
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Until 2008, applications for registration in the AJC Peachtree Road Race were published inThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the third Sunday in March. The first 45,000 applications received were automatically entered into the race; an additional 10,000 applications are randomly selected from remaining applications post-marked by March 31. The race is currently limited to 60,000 entries. The 2009 registration fee was $33.[22] Atlanta Track Club requires runners to be at least 10 years of age by the day of the race.
The race is divided into 21 starting groups, all based on times verified at USA Track and Field certified courses with the past two years at distances between 5 km and 21.1 km (half marathon) races that the runner must submit to the Atlanta Track Club at time of registration in March. The last groups (W, X, and Y) will be assigned to runners who did not send a verified time from a USATF-certified course. Seeded runners, invited athletes, and the first group (Group A) start at 7:30 AM, while groups are launched at intervals of between four and six minutes each, with the last group (Group Y) starting at 9:05 AM.[23]
Due to the limited number of spaces available in the race, as well as the three and a half month advance registration requirement, some people have attempted to sell their number on eBay and craigslist, although this practice is prohibited by Atlanta Track Club. Runners who are assigned a number for the race, and subsequently cannot run, are able to return their number to Atlanta Track Club in exchange for a card guaranteeing placement in next year's race. (Registration fees, however, are not refunded.)
On July 4, 2007, three men were caught sneaking in to the AJC Peachtree Road Race. In addition to a $1,000 fine, each was banned from the AJC Peachtree Road Race for life.[citation needed]
For the return of the lottery in the "south" Peachtree in July 2025, the lottery will be conducted in April. All entries for the lottery are done in April, and will be added to Atlanta Track Club members, those who registered in the first week after the 2024 Peachtree, and those who participated in the "north" Peachtree in January 2025.
The AJC Peachtree Road Race is a 10,000-meter road race. The "south" Peachtree race starts on Peachtree Road at Lenox Square Mall (just south of Lenox Road). The race continues down Peachtree into midtown Atlanta, turning left onto 10th Street for the final kilometer before ending at 10th St. and Charles Allen Drive.Piedmont Park provides the setting for post-race festivities that include a stage for live performances and an awards ceremony. After a largely downhill first half, runners cross Peachtree Creek and tackle the grueling 3/4 mile-long "Cardiac Hill," which culminates at Peachtree and Collier Rd. in front of Piedmont Hospital. Mile 5 has been known as the Olympic Mile, where banners and theme music entertained IOC members in 1990 during Atlanta's bid for the1996 Summer Olympics.
In 2008, because of severe drought conditions, the race was unable to end in Piedmont Park, and runners turned east onto 10th Street before heading to Juniper Street, ending at the intersection of Ponce de Leon and Juniper St, where racers finished by going uphill instead of the older downhill stretch of 10th St. Runners then walked a short distance to the Atlanta Civic Center for finish-line festivities. This unpopular course lasted one year, after which the course returned to the traditional pattern.
As typical of other road races, the roads used are completely closed to vehicular traffic and observers watch from the sidewalks. Water is provided at each mile; approximately 500,000 cups and 120,000 gallons of water are used.[3] Approximately 3,000 volunteers are needed to work the race.[3]
Due to the large crowds, limited parking and road closures, many runners utilizeMARTA to travel to the start site and back from the finish line.
The "north" Peachtree, known as the Polar Opposite, is exactly the reverse, starting at 10th Street and Piedmont Park, turning right to Peachtree Street and taking Cardiac Hill down, then Peachtree Creek, and an uphill second half, ending at Lenox Square Mall.
University of Georgia track and field coachSpec Towns shot the starter pistol to start the first Peachtree Road Race in 1970. Georgia GovernorJimmy Carter started the second race and Georgia Lt. GovernorLester Maddox the third. Since then, many notable people have started the race.[24] Georgia Tech coach and politicianBuddy Fowlkes was another official starter.
The 110 runners who finished the first Peachtree Road Race are known as the "Original 110". Bill Thorn, Sr. completed the first 52 Peachtree Road Races from 1970 to 2022. The 92-year old ended his streak after the 2022 race.[25] In honor of the streak, Thorn was granted a ceremonial crossing of the finish line and his name engraved on the Peachtree cup, which is normally reserved for race champions, and named the grand marshal for the 2023 race, the first year of the honour.[26]
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The official race T-shirt is perhaps the most popular aspect of the AJC Peachtree Road Race, perhaps due to the limited numbers of T-shirts available in the early race years. Each year a different design is chosen through a contest sponsored byThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper and a limited number of shirts are made. T-shirts are available to only those runners who finish the race, and thus have become a status-symbol among Atlanta culture.[citation needed]
It is estimated that the AJC Peachtree Road Race costs over $1,000,000, if in-kind contributions are included.[27] The race must pay between $25,000 and $30,000 to government agencies for their costs of supporting the race. T-shirts for runners and volunteers are estimated to cost over $200,000. The race also pays $25,000 for its timing system and $100,000 for contract labor.[27] The AJC Peachtree Road Race was estimated in 2003 to have an economic impact over $10,000,000.[27] Profits from the race entry fees and sponsorships are used to fund the Atlanta Track Club.[27]
First held during the 2014 race, the annualKilometer Kids Charity Chase features six teams representing each branch of the military:Air Force,Army,Coast Guard,Marine Corps,National Guard and theNavy. Each team will have six runners each, all competing for bragging rights in two areas: the fastest military branch, and the team that receives the most donations for Atlanta Track Club's Kilometer Kids youth running program.[28]
The military competition takes place after the Shepherd Center Wheelchair Division of the AJC Peachtree Road Race, and before the Peachtree Cup elite competition and general race waves begin.[28]
The online portion of the fundraiser allows supporters to select a military team at the time of donation. All proceeds go towards the Atlanta Track Club's Kilometer Kids youth program. Starting in 2015, a portion of the donations are to go towards starting a Kilometer Kids program atFort Moore, the first one to be established on a military base.[28]
The Peachtree Cup is an elite team competition that had its inaugural at the 2015 Peachtree Road Race. The competition takes place after the Kilometer Kids Charity Chase and before the general race waves began their run. The Peachtree Cup features four entries: Team USA, Team Africa, Team Asia, and Team Europe. The roster of each team consist of six athletes, three men and three women vying for international bragging rights. One member of each team is selected as the team captain. The determining of the winning team consists of combining each of the team members’ individual finish times together and the team with the fastest cumulative time is the winner. The team that comes in first place will receive the first-place prize of $42,000 US.[29]
TheAtlanta Track Club Triple Peach Race Series presented byMizuno, a program designed to improve theAtlanta running experience, features three ofAtlanta's top running events: AJC Peachtree Road Race, Atlanta 10-Miler (in October) and the Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon (Thanksgiving Day) (all races that were part of the originalAtlanta Marathon). The annual race series was started in 2013 by the Atlanta Track Club and partner sponsorVolkswagen Group of America. It was originally called theVW Triple Peach, but Volkswagen of America dropped its sponsorship of the race after only the first year, resulting in the race series' being renamed theAtlanta Track Club Triple Peach Race Series the following year, 2014. In 2015,Mizuno Corporation became the new program sponsor.[30]
The Triple Peach is limited to 4,000 participants. Registration includes one low price for the Atlanta 10-Miler and the Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon. All participants receive a Triple Peach finisher's medal and a Triple Peach finisher's T-shirt. The program also uses unique bibs that allow participants the opportunity to self-seed in the start corrals at both the Atlanta 10-Miler and the Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon. Upon finishing the Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon, Triple Peach participants meet at a special celebration area to be officially recognized and to fine-tune the program for the coming year.[31]
In 2020, the Triple Peach was replaced by an unofficial Double Peach with the cancellation of the Peachtree. The Atlanta 10-Miler was held in Braselton atMichelin Raceway (three lap race, first two laps integrated an infield section) and the Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon was replaced by thePublix Half Marathon in Hampton with perimeter roads of theAtlanta Motor Speedway.
In the 2025-26 season, the Ultimate Peach replaced the Triple Peach. The Ultimate Peach adds theAtlanta Marathon to the races.
In 2023 the Atlanta Track Club announced the inception of theTriple Peach Junior, the youth version of the Triple Peach Race Series for kids 14 years and under. To qualify for Triple Peach Junior, youth runners, and walkers must register for and complete the following in-person events:
There is not a separate registration for Triple Peach Junior. Participants are automatically entered into the series once they have signed up for all three in-person events (either mile or dash). At the Invesco QQQ Thanksgiving Day Mile & Dash, eligible runners/walkers for the Triple Peach Junior Series are recognized with unique stickers on their race bib on Thanksgiving Day. Upon race completion, participants are awarded the Triple Peach Junior Finisher's medal.[32]
Founded in 1982 by theShepherd Center, theShepherd Center Wheelchair Division of AJC Peachtree Road Race precedes the foot race, starting at 6:45 am. The wheelchair division follows the same 10-kilometer course run by the foot runners down Peachtree Road, starting at Lenox Road and ending on 10th Street at Piedmont Park in Midtown. Since its 1981 founding, the wheelchair division has grown in popularity so that the race now attracts more than 78 wheelchair racers ranging in age from 16 to 69 and representing more than nine countries. Today, theShepherd Center Wheelchair Division of AJC Peachtree Road Race is considered one of the largest and fastest wheelchair 10K races in the country and is a favorite for many racers who return year after year.[33][34]
TheShepherd Center and its Junior Committee fund and organize the wheelchair division race in cooperation with the Atlanta Track Club. Funding provides pre-and post-race brunches, defrayed travel and lodging expenses for racers and a $34,000 purse for winners. TheShepherd Center Wheelchair Division of AJC Peachtree Road Race racing divisions are as follows:
Since 2004, satellite Peachtree Races have been held for US soldiers stationed overseas. The first race was held inIraq. In 2007, five separate races were held on July 4 (one inKuwait, three in Iraq, and one inAfghanistan) with a combined total of 3000 participants.[38] The Atlanta Track Club sends race supplies, including T-shirts, to the runners.
Started in 1987,The Peachtree Junior consists of three races:
Starting in 2015, ten Kid-FriendlyDecathlon events were added to the Peachtree Junior. The decathlon events take place upon completion of each of the three Peachtree Junior races and are open to participants ages fourteen and under.[39][40]
The race is designed to be a shorter and safer version of the longer Peachtree Road Race. All race participants get the opportunity to take part in thePeachtree Jr. Challenge, which awards scholarships to the top three organizations that sign up the most kids. The event is held in late May or early June. The entire course is within the confines ofPiedmont Park. The race is limited to 2,500 participants. T-shirts are given to all race finishers. The event has been held for over 20 years.[41][42]
For the First time ever in Peachtree Jr. history and in correlation with the 50th running of the Peachtree Road Race, 2019, the Atlanta Track Club decided to move the Peachtree Jr. permanently to July 3 as part of the Peachtree Road Race experience.[43]
As part of the move to July 3, the course was changed to include for the first time a portion of the official Peachtree Road Race 10K course thus leaving the confines within Piedmont Park for the first time as well. The start of the course would be located at the corner of Charles Allen Drive and Piedmont Park Avenue next to the south portion of Lake Clara Meer within the Piedmont Park boundary. Runners would head west on Piedmont Park Avenue still inside Piedmont Park until they reached 12th Street Gate leaving the park. Portions of the Peachtree Road Race 10K course used for the Peachtree Jr. would be the south portion of Piedmont Avenue from the 12th Street Gate and the 10th Street portion that includes the same finish on 10th Street as the 10K .[44]
The course record for the traditionalsouth Peachtree from Lenox Square to 10th Street is 27:04 minutes, set byJoseph Kimani in 1996 (Kipruto was stripped of his 2019 record for doping).[45]Lornah Kiplagat is the women's record holder with her run of 30:32 from 2002.[3] The record for the wheelchair division of the Peachtree Road Race is 18:38:06 (Saul Mendoza) 2004.[3] The women's division record is 22:09:97 (Edith Hunkler) 2009.[3] Gayle Barron and Lornah Kiplagat are the athletes with the most victories in the history of the Peachtree Road Race. Barron won in the women's division on five occasions (1970–71, 1973–75), while Kiplagat had her victories from 2000–2002 and 2005–2006.[3]
Thenorth Peachtree record from 10th Street to Lenox Square is 34:57 by Lars Pöttgen, with Laura Pifer holding the women's record at 36:25, both in the inaugural 2025 race.
Key: Course record United States national championship race
Key: Course record United States national championship race
Key: Team captain Course record
| Edition | Year | Team winner/time (m:s) | Team/Individual Men | Time (m:s) | Team/Individual Women | Time (m:s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2015 | Team Africa 3:06:29 | ||||
 Daniel Salel (KEN) | 28:43 |  Buze Diriba (ETH) | 32:13 | |||
| Gebre Gebremariam (ETH) | 29:42 | Caroline Kilel (KEN) | 32:30 | |||
 Lusapho April (RSA) | 29:57 | Valentine Kibet (KEN) | 33:27 | |||
| 2nd | 2016 | N/A |  Gabriel Geay (TAN) | 28:49 | Edna Kiplagat (KEN) | 32:24 |
| 3rd | 2017 | N/A |  Leonard Korir (USA) | 28:16 | Aliphine Tuliamuk (USA) | 32:49 |
| 4th | 2018 | N/A | Bernard Lagat (USA) | 28:45 | Stephanie Bruce (USA) | 32:21 |
| 5th | 2019 | N/A | Rhonex Kipruto (KEN) | 27:01 | Brigid Kosgei (KEN) | 30:21 |
| 6th | 2021 | N/A | Sam Chelanga (USA) | 28:42 | Sara Hall (USA) | 31:40 |
| 7th | 2022 | N/A | Rhonex Kipruto (KEN) | 27:26 | Senbere Teferi (ETH) | 30:49 |
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