Under Armour Announces the Flow Elite Project for The Baltimore Marathon

Intro

This Saturday, October 15, is a bit like Christmas morning for Baltimore runners. It’s the Baltimore Running Festival, an event with race distances ranging from 5K to marathon, bringing the entire city and region together for a celebration of running.

It’s also a full display of the Baltimore spirit: the hard-working, nose-to-the-grindstone, day-in and day-out work ethic that the city is known for. That spirit is what laid the foundation for Under Armour, the once-underdog/now-powerhouse athletic company, to succeed in bringing premium apparel and footwear to athletes around the globe.

To honor the spirit of Baltimore and the athletes with a connection to the city, Under Armour set out to create the Flow Elite Team, a unique collection of runners for this year’s edition of the Baltimore Marathon. Unlike most sponsored teams, this group of 26 athletes (9 women, 17 men) is comprised of everyday runners– those who work 9-to-5 jobs, ranging from mechanical engineers to physical therapists, from accountants to Baltimore City school teachers. These are runners who have kids and families, and, well… normal lives outside of running.

Flow Elite member Conrad Laskowski

One thing they all have in common is a connection to Baltimore. Many of them have won or placed on the podium in past years of the Baltimore Marathon. Some grew up here, while others ran at one of the many colleges and universities around the city and never left. By choice or by chance, Baltimore has become a core part of their running story.\

To honor those stories, Under Armour set out to give the Flow Elite team the most premium experience possible. Providing them with footwear, training, and access to Under Armour coaches and staff, the goal was to give these everyday athletes a training experience that is typically reserved for sponsored elites.

Flow Elite member Mikka Kei Macdonald

On race day, the athletes will wear the all-new, yet-to-be-released Under Armour Flow Velociti Elite shoe. The shoe features a carbon-fiber plate, two-part Pebax/supercritical midsole, and lightweight, breathable upper. It’s designed to give the athletes the energy return, comfort, and performance needed on race day.

Under Armour Flow Velociti Elite

Cash prizes will be awarded to athletes who hit certain benchmarks of performance for the Baltimore Marathon.

While we’ve seen plenty of sponsored teams of elites, it’s refreshing to see a brand in our hometown highlighting the work ethic and dedication of runners just like us. To give those athletes training like this is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, proving that the “elite” is more than just a status tied to a time on a clock. It’s also a standard of performance in life.