Puma’s Project3 Pays Big for Runners at the London Marathon

What You Need To Know

Treating PRs like WRs

It’s something special to become a professional athlete. It takes years of dedication and discipline, and nothing is ever guaranteed. It takes those very same qualities just to get kinda decent at running, too. Trust us, we have a team full of kinda decent folks, and we’ve been at it for a minute. So, when you have the chance to get treated like a pro, why not take it and run?

That’s pretty much the idea behind Puma’s Project3, a challenge for sub-elite runners looking to chase PRs and get rewarded. Essentially, Puma has taken a group of athletes who are freakin’ fast (under 3 hours for men and under 3:15 for women), kitted them out with its latest shoes and apparel (the Fast-R 3 and Deviate Nitro Elite 4), and challenged them to set personal records at either London or Berlin. Pretty much as cool as it gets.

Even better, if the athletes beat their personal best by more than three minutes, Puma presented them with $3,000 — serious cash on top of the runner’s high of going fast. Out of the nearly 200 participants, an impressive 84 set PRs, with 54 runners meeting the cash threshold, totaling over six hours of time dropped and over $170,000 in payouts. The number of signed professional contracts among them? Zero.

Of Puma’s crew, Chris Perry had the best day, finishing with a 2:13:41 that would have put him right in the mix with London’s elite lineup. On the women’s side, Katina Ballantyne-Chalmers was the first to finish in 2:35:32, but Carina Li notched the biggest drop of the day at nearly a 20-minute PR.

Think you can handle Project3?

What makes Project3 special is the fact that it’s a program for the everyday runner. Well, the sub-elite everyday runner, but the entry requirements are a little bit less strict than those of, say, the Boston Marathon or New York City Marathon. You still have to throw down an impressive time, but there’s more to it than that.

The way it works is that Puma opens the doors to its program before major racing cycles (just London and Boston this spring), and any eligible runner can apply — provided they already have a bib and proof of their current PR. Then, they’ll get a big, shiny box of Puma gear, and it’s off to the races. Literally. Well, almost literally — there’s still a run-up period where they’ll be able to train in the gear and work with Puma coaches for support.

Anyway, the bad news is that Project3 has now wrapped for Spring 2026. The times have been run and the dust has settled. But, if you’re eagerly awaiting your next chance to throw your name in the ring, don’t worry — there should be another cycle in the coming months as fall races roll around.

In the meantime, check out the Fast-R 3 at the buttons below — it’s still the fastest cat outside of a literal cheetah.