Saidi Makula of Tanzania won the Lifetime Miami Marathon on Sunday, bringing in a $4,500 prize for his time of 2 hours and 21 minutes, besting thousands who participated in the 26.2-mile course that ran through Downtown, Miami Beach and Coconut Grove before returning to the start near Bayfront Park.
Through a translator, Makula said he “trained for three months on a series of hills and flats, while maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle.” He is hoping to represent his country in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and the Miami race was part of his preparation.
On Friday and Saturday, runners picked up their race kits at an expo event held at Mana Wynwood. Also Saturday, a 5k warm-up event was held, with the course passing by the Port of Miami and ending in South Beach.
Though many ran to win, others competed to raise awareness of particular issues.
Oscar Ortiz said he runs in honor of his son, Sebastian Ortiz, who died in 2016 of cancer. Now on his seventh marathon, Ortiz said he uses the event to help raise money for pediatric cancer charities.
This annual event, which started in 2003, has grown each year, organizers said.
