DETROIT – From the finish line to the runners working hard to make it there, the Detroit Free Press/Talmer Bank Marathon had a little of everything on Sunday morning.
The marathon kicked off before dawn as a sea of more than 27,000 runners started in temperatures below 40 degrees. The winner is Zachary Ornelas, a full-time teacher from Ann Arbor, who trains at night and told one of his students, Amari, that he did it for him.
The first woman to cross the finish line was Russian Lyubov Denisova.
From series runners to groups running to raise money for charity, all kinds of people hit the streets of Detroit. Community Church in Sterling Heights raised $40,000 to help a village in Cambodia. North Ridge Church raised nearly $325,000 to help victims of human trafficking in metro Detroit.
There was even a new engagement at the event. Nick Nowaczewski, of Sterling Heights, greeted his girlfriend, Jeana Johnson, at the finish line to giver her a ring, not a metal.
More than 40 groups raised money for charity by running in the marathon and the event raised $2 million.