Courtesy: event press release

The Houston Marathon will continue to run the HP way. HP, Houston's largest high-tech employer, has renewed its sponsorship of the Houston Marathon and will continue to serve as title sponsor for the race for the next three years.

"We are looking forward to building on our commitment to the Houston community through our sponsorship of this great event," said Mike Winkler, HP Chief Marketing Officer. "The HP Houston Marathon has tremendous momentum behind it, as witnessed this year by record participation from runners and volunteers alike. The event touches so many segments of our community from runners, volunteers and supporters to the charities that make up the Run for a Reason program. We're proud to be part of such an important community event."

This year's Run for a Reason initiative was a tremendous success, raising an event record of nearly $400,000 for more than 50 Houston-area nonprofit organizations.

HP's support of the marathon has touched virtually every aspect of the race, with employees participating, volunteering and coordinating the technology that has taken the race experience to new levels for spectators.

For the past three years, the HP athlete tracking system has provided fans with runner updates through the marathon Web site, wireless athlete-alert notifications delivered to PDAs and mobile phones, and nearly instant race results.

HP's involvement with the race began in 2001, when Compaq assumed title sponsorship of the event.

"The Houston Marathon wouldn't be the race it is today without the generous support of our sponsors and, in HP, we have one of the best," said Brant Kotch, HP Houston Marathon Race Director. "HP has been the vision behind bringing technology to the event, adding the half-marathon and truly embracing the race as a community event. The partnership between HP and the Houston Marathon Committee is one of the reasons the event is such a success."

In addition to being Houston's most-recognized road race, the HP Houston Marathon has a significant impact on the local economy. According to a study conducted by Conventions, Sports & Leisure International, the 2003 event generated $11.3 million in direct spending by runners and other consumers and produced $1.4 million in state and local tax revenues.

The 2004 edition of the HP Houston Marathon - the 32nd consecutive running of the marathon - is scheduled for Jan. 18. Race weekend will feature the flagship 26.2-mile race, half- marathon and 5K.

These events combined to draw 11,879 participants in 2003 - a 24- percent increase over 2002 and a record for the event. Adding the Texas Children's Hospital Kids' Fun Run, which took place on the Saturday before the three main races, race weekend attracted nearly 18,000 participants.

Participation in 2004 is expected to approach 20,000 runners.

About the HP Houston Marathon
The HP Houston Marathon, a Running USA founding member, is the nation's premier winter marathon, annually attracting participants from all 50 U.S. states and several foreign countries. In 2003, nearly 18,000 runners took part in four marathon weekend events (marathon, half-marathon, four-mile run and children's run). The HP Houston Marathon offers the only closed marathon course in Texas and is ranked among the top five in the nation by the Ultimate Guide to Marathons for fastest course, organization and crowd support. More than 5,000 volunteers organize the race, which is Houston's largest single- day sporting event. Further information is available at www.HPhoustonmarathon.com or by calling (713) 957-3453.