The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon is in its 30th year. The marathon will take place on Sunday, October 7th. 45,000 participants are anticipated to run in this year’s marathon. They have created a newly-designed site to meet the needs of their runners.

The website was originally designed to serve registration of 45,00 entries en mass. It was also designed to serve as a communications tool to give specifics about the event.

The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon decided to take the opportunity to raise the bar of the industry and develop a site that would not only further engage its audience, but reach out to non-runners alike with an opportunity to dial into the never-ending energy the Marathon generates, said Shawn Platt, LaSalle Bank’s Senior Vice President and Director of Brand Management and Sports Marketing

With the event approximately five weeks away, they are anticipating high-traffic at their site. The website has many new highlights:

There is imagery from the past 30 years of the marathon’s history. There is also information about training, preparation and actual race day.

Inspiration Bank offers visitors the opportunity to share their motivation, stories and tips through online diaries, runner essays, photo galleries, polls and top ten lists. In alliance with the emotional feel of the new design, the Inspiration Bank is another manner in which all involved runners, spectators and supporters have the ability to connect with the global Marathon community. Includes a variety of features such as a countdown clock, runner tracking, podcasts, online polling and video galleries.

The LaSalle Chicago Marathon has raised more than $27.5 million for numerous charities, including $9.3 in accordance with the 2006 alone.

Source: Runner’s Web and Triathlete’s Web