Runners off the blocks: Minneapolis marathon canceled hours before start time
A Minnesota marathon was canceled with two hours of notice Sunday.
The Twin Cities in Motion announced on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that the running events scheduled for Sunday in Minneapolis were canceled due to, "EAS Black Flag weather conditions," at 6:18 a.m. local time, with the marathon race's starting gun scheduled to go off at 8 a.m.
The predicted high for Minneapolis is 89 degrees with an air quality index of 63. If correct, it would break the record temperature for the day set in 1897, according to Accuweather.
"It saddens Twin Cities in Motion and our partners to be unable to hold the races that runners have been pointing toward for months, but the safety of participants and the community will always be our primary concern," race organizers said in a release.
"Extreme heat conditions can tax both runners and our emergency medical response systems. We ask the entire running community to come together for the safety of everyone involved," they added.
Organizers said that a decision about, "possible credit," for the cancelation would be made by Thursday.
Runners upset, take to the course anyway
Runners who were supposed to participate in the marathon on Sunday posted their frustrations about the cancelation on social media.
But some runners told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that they planned to at least go for a jog on Sunday, making up for a small part of the planned event. Others told the outlet that organizers made the safe decision for participants and volunteers.