This Thursday brings the start of the Penn Relays, a 129-year-old track and field tradition — and a mainstay of springtime in Philadelphia.
When the annual event started at the University of Pennsylvania in 1895, it drew an audience of 5,000. Now, the event is a three-day festival at Franklin Field that draws crowds of up to 100,000 people, according to Visit Philadelphia. It’s recognized as the “world's first and largest track and field relay meet,” according to its Pennsylvania historical marker.
Participants, from high school students to “masters,” come from all over the world to compete in the Penn Relays Carnival, and the area around Franklin Field — known as “Carnival Village” — is filled with vendors, contributing to a festival-like atmosphere.
“More athletes have run at the Penn Relays than at any single meet in the world,” David Johnson, the former director of the Penn Relays, wrote in 2008. “More spectators have watched the meet than any in the world except the Olympics and World Championships.”
You might recognize the names of former contestants, like Jim Thorpe, Jesse Owens, and Usain Bolt. Even Bernie Sanders participated when he was in high school, per the Daily Pennsylvanian.
Until 2020, the Penn Relays had been held for 125 consecutive years, including during World War I and World War II. It was canceled in 2020 for the first time in its history because of the COVID pandemic. A scaled-back version, called the “Philly Mets,” happened in 2021. It returned in full swing in 2022.
👟 If you’re looking to attend, one-day tickets to get into Franklin Field start at $26.
