The 21st annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Little Rock and North Little Rock will be Oct. 4 with the theme "Move. Be Moved," organizers announced Tuesday.
Race officials gathered in the lobby of the Simmons First National Bank tower in Little Rock to reveal information about this year's event, including the date and theme and a $1.6 million fundraising goal for all race events.
Officials also unveiled a new race map that moves the course off the Broadway Bridge because of potential construction. That span is set to be closed while a replacement is built, though the exact closing date hasn't been set.
It's the first deviation from the race's traditional route in its history, organizers said.
More than 35,000 people participated in the 2013 Race for the Cure, raising $1.6 million. Of that $1 million, went to grants for breast cancer education, screenings and treatments, 2014 Race Chair Ashley Hurst said.
"I've always found race morning to be intensely moving," Hurst told a crowd gathered for the kickoff event Tuesday. "Whether you're a survivor or you have no family history of breast cancer, being downtown that morning is powerful. It's 40,000 people coming together to support a good cause. But on that cool October morning, you realize it's more than that. You see the faces of the people you're supporting."
A number of race supporters and breast cancer survivors attended the kickoff event, watching a Google Earth three-dimensional tour of the new race route and seeing new T-shirt and medal designs revealed.
Among them was Celese Marshall, a longtime race participant who was diagnosed with breast cancer 10 years after her mother died from the disease.
"Strengthened by the memory of her grace and her power, fortunately I was able to fight and survive breast cancer," said Marshall, one of 11 people whose stories are featured in the 2014 Komen campaign. "It's now my mission to help others do the same."
Participants can register for the 2014 race at the Komen website.
