Runners Pay Tribute to Nipsey Hussle at the LA Marathon
Run Club Honors Nipsey Hussle at LA Marathon
The Marathon Run Club, a tribute to the late rapper Nipsey Hussle, is set to bring its energy to the Los Angeles Marathon this weekend.
On Tuesday afternoon, members of the club completed a light three-mile training run in preparation for the main event on Sunday, where they will tackle the full 26.2-mile marathon.
Nipsey Hussle initially launched the Marathon brand in 2009, starting as a music venture before expanding into apparel and, following his tragic death in 2019, into the Marathon burger chain. Jorge Peniche, a long-time business associate of Hussle, emphasized that transforming Marathon from a figurative to a literal concept was always part of the vision.
“He’s the one who put the battery on our team’s back and said we’re going to do it. And in order to make good on that promise, in 2024 our team took the initiative and said let’s move forward on this,” Peniche noted.
The Marathon Run Club was established to engage the community and promote this vision. The club’s inaugural run attracted approximately 400 to 500 participants from various racial and socio-economic backgrounds.
“It’s really great to live out the physical manifestation of breaking down those barriers,” said Dasjanae Mosley, a first-time runner.
Ralphy Vies, who moved to Los Angeles from New York a year ago, joined the club around the same time. He remarked on his transformation since becoming part of the group. “Every weekend, there’s been times when I couldn’t even walk after running. And now we’re here. So it’s just about having a goal and just keep working towards it,” he expressed.
This Sunday, around 100 runners donning Marathon Run Club t-shirts are expected to cross the LA marathon finish line. For many, this will symbolize not just the completion of a race but a significant step forward in their overall journey.
The participants are also raising funds for the Neighborhood Nip Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Marathon brand, which aims to convert the former site of the Marathon clothing store at Crenshaw and Slauson into a community center.
“We’re chipping away one dollar at a time to make that happen, and one mile at a time,” Vies concluded.
