National Marathon Safety and Security Summit set for Dec. 16-18

Marathon officials from across the country will converge on The University of Southern Mississippi's Hattiesburg campus Dec. 16-18 for the National Marathon Safety and Security Summit, hosted by the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4).

The goal of the summit is to establish best practices by addressing major safety and security issues through input from marathon event administrators, government officials, city/state/federal law enforcement, city planners, emergency managers, first responders, health services, and fire/HazMat services.

“Unfortunately threats to sport events like marathons are a reality, I am glad that the country's best professionals in the field of marathon operations will address the major safety and security issues facing the industry,” said Dr. Lou Marciani, director of NCS4. “We look forward to providing an environment at the National Center for the sharing of experiences and developing a new safety and security baseline for the profession.”

The event, to be held at the Trent Lott National Center, resulted from NCS4 Advisory Board feedback on current safety and security issues facing marathon events in the aftermath of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings. Attendees of the summit will have the opportunity to participate in moderated discussions (round robin) for each of the six designated issues:

• Event Day: Public/Private Collaboration
• Crowd Dynamics/Management
• Emergency Action Planning
• Risk and Threat Assessment/Vulnerabilities and Planning
• Staff Performance
• Technology Use/Implementation/Innovation/Information Management

“This is a significant event in the history of large road races. It is the first of its kind and the end product will be the establishment of a best practices guide for marathon events, applicable to road races of all sizes across the United States,” said Peter Ciacca, chief production officer and technical director of the TSC New York City Marathon.

Steering Committee members providing assistance and guidance for the Summit include: Virginia Brophy Achman, Twin Cities Marathon; Angela Anderson, Marine Corps Marathon; George Banker, Army Ten-Miler; John Bertsch, Ironman World Championships; Ted Metellus, Competitor Group; Kyle McLaughlin, New York Marathon; Wade Morehead, Houston Marathon; Josh Nemzer, Boston Marathon; Mike Nishi, Chicago Marathon; and Stu Weiss, New York City Marathon.

For more information about the National Marathon Safety and Security Summit, visit https://www.ncs4.com/events/marathon-summit.