The Carlsbad 5000 is an annual five kilometer (3.1 mile)

road running Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain. These events are usually classified as long-distance ru ...

event that takes place each spring in the city of

Carlsbad, California Carlsbad is a beach city in the North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. The city is north of downtown San Diego and south of downtown Los Angeles. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of ...

, along the north coast of

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its border with Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634; it is the second-most populous ...

Organization

The event is organized by Groundwork Endurance, a San Diego–based company which acquired the race in 2018 from

World Triathlon Corporation The World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) is a sports event promotion company owned by conglomerate Advance Publications, that produces the Ironman Triathlon, Ironman 70.3, the 5150 series of triathlon races, and other sports events. History In D ...

. Headlining the Groundwork Endurance ownership team is US Olympian, Meb Keflezighi, the only runner in history to win the NYC Marathon,

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...

, and an

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

Marathon medal.

Event overview

The event, which was first held in 1986, features seven 5k races, with participation in a specific race determined by each runners age and gender. The full day of running culminates with the men's and women's

Skechers Skechers USA, Inc. is an American multinational footwear and apparel company. Headquartered in Manhattan Beach, California, it was founded in 1992 and is the third largest footwear brand in the world. History Skechers was founded in 1992 by R ...

Performance Elite Invitationals, both of which feature professional fields competing for a substantial cash purse. In addition to the 5k races, there is a dedicated event for kids-only, the Junior Carlsbad, with distances ranging from a one mile fun run down to a diaper dash. The weekend also includes a free health and wellness expo, elite athlete Q&A, and post-race Pizza Port beer garden.

Course

The 5k race course begins on Grand Avenue in downtown Carlsbad before following a south-to-north loop on Carlsbad Boulevard along the Pacific coast. The southern turnaround is near Tamarack Avenue and the northern turnaround is located near the

Army and Navy Academy Army and Navy Academy is an elite private college-preparatory military boarding school for boys in Carlsbad, California. Founded in 1910, the academy admits boys in grades 7 through 12. History The Academy was founded by Colonel Thomas A. Da ...

. The course returns south before making a final turn onto Carlsbad Village Drive for a downhill finish in Carlsbad Village. The course is sanctioned and certified by

USA Track and Field USA Track & Field (USATF) is a United States national Sport governing body, governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was kn ...

, the governing body for the sport.

Winners

The course records of 12:59.5 minutes for men (set by

Sammy Kipketer Sammy Kipketer (born 29 September 1981 in Rokocho, Keiyo District) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in the 5000 metres and cross-country running. Career He graduated from Lelboinet Secondary School in 1998. The next year he quali ...

in 2000) and 14:46 minutes for women (set by

Meseret Defar Meseret Defar Tola (Amharic: መሠረት ደፋር; born 19 November 1983) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who competes chiefly in the 3,000 metres and 5,000 metres events. She has won medals at top-tier international competitions includ ...

in 2006) are the fastest times ever recorded for the 5 km road distance. These are recognized as world bests by the

Association of Road Racing Statisticians The Association of Road Racing Statisticians is an independent, non-profit organization that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics regarding road running races. The primary purpose of the ARRS is to maintain a valid list of world road record ...

. However, records for the road distance were not recognized by the

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport ...

until November 2017. In 2019, Kenyan

Edward Cheserek Edward Cheserek (born 2 February 1994) is a Kenyan distance runner. He is a 17-time NCAA champion collegiate distance runner for the University of Oregon. Cheserek was the most highly recruited high school distance runner in the nation out of Sai ...

won the men's elite invitational in a time of 13:29, which equalled the official IAAF record set earlier that same year. Cheserek returned to Carlsbad 5000 for his second consecutive win with a time of 13:44, one second away from second-place Reid Buchanan. American Steve Scott not only helped design the course in 1986 but won the inaugural race en route to three straight victories. Other notable past winners include

Eliud Kipchoge Eliud Kipchoge (born 5 November 1984) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and formerly specialized in the 5000 metres. Kipchoge is the Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon, 2016 and Athletics at th ...

Deena Kastor Deena Michelle Kastor (née Drossin; born February 14, 1973) is an American long-distance runner. She is the former American record holder in the marathon (2003-2022) and numerous road distances. Kastor held 15 American records simultaneously in ...

(Drossin), and

Dejen Gebremeskel Dejen Gebremeskel (Amharic: ደጀን ገብረመስቀል; born 24 November 1989) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who primarily competes in track events. His personal best of 12:46.81 minutes for the 5,000 metres ranks him as the ...

.Marty Post, Ryan Lamppa, Jack Leydig (2011-04-04)
Carlsbad 5 km

. Retrieved on 2011-04-10.

Past winners

Key:

References

{{reflist ;List of winners *Marty Post, Ryan Lamppa, Jack Leydig (2011-04-04)
Carlsbad 5 km