WHEELING — For more than four decades, the Ogden Newspapers Half Marathon Classic has been a staple of the Wheeling summer schedule. Tens of thousands of runners have tread the course over those years.

That summer staple has been on the shelf since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this year, the race is returning to the joy of runners and walkers throughout the Ohio Valley and beyond.

The 44th running of the Ogden Newspapers Half Marathon Classic will be held Saturday, May 28, as part of the Ogden Newspapers Wellness Weekend. The weekend-long celebration of health and physical fitness is back after a two-year pandemic-forced hiatus.

“It’s great,” race director Joe Lovell said of the Wellness Weekend. “We’re able to put this on at the same level as before. It adds a lot. People are excited about it.”

The half-marathon walk will begin at 7:30 a.m. May 28, with the half-marathon run following at 7:50 a.m.

Runners and walkers are ready to return to the 13.1-mile course they remember from many years past. It’s a challenging path that takes competitors through several of Wheeling’s neighborhoods – from downtown Wheeling to Woodsdale to Elm Grove – and gives runners a true test in terms of changing elevation.

The first test is the climb that comes about 3 miles into the race, where the elevation leaps from about 600 feet above sea level to 1,250 feet about 5 miles in. Hills are a challenge in road races like this, and the Ogden Newspapers Half Marathon Classic has plenty of them, Lovell said.

“The hills made it just a different race,” Lovell said. “Once you thought you were done with one hill, here comes another one. Once you start 29th Street and come down and then you have National Road. And you have Wheeling Hill and Chicken Neck Hill.”

There’s more motivation than just the satisfaction of finishing for the event’s top runners.

Cash prizes will be handed out to the top four finishers in the men’s and women’s runs and top three finishers in the men’s and women’s walks. The winner of the men’s and women’s runs will earn $1,125 each, while the winners of the men’s and women’s walks will earn $200 each.

No participant in either the run or the walk will go emptyhanded. Race towels, bottled water and fresh fruit will be available to all participants, and they each will receive one food voucher. Pre-registered participants are guaranteed a shirt.

Also, official race medals will be given to each finisher of the run and walk. The medals will be handed out as competitors cross the finish line.

Perry Nardo, general manager of The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register, said it is good to see the Wellness Weekend back on track.

“We’re so pleased to be able to get this event back on track for the Ohio Valley,” Nardo said. “We’re excited, our sponsors and supporters are excited to see everyone back out in their running shoes during the Wellness Weekend, and we’re all just looking forward to a really great event.”

Registration remains open for Ogden Newspapers Half-Marathon Classic. The race is part of a two-day event that also includes the Ziegenfelder Twin Pops 5K Run and Walk, the Ogden Fun Run presented by Zigenfelder and Tiny Tot Trot presented by Ziegenfelder, all scheduled for Saturday, May 28. On Sunday, May 29, is the Tough As Nails Urban Challenge presented by The Health Plan. To register and for more information on the races, visit ogdenwellnessweekend.com.