LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (March 1, 2026) — Two-time Olympian Des Linden came to Florida to train but ended up winning the Disney Princess Half Marathon on Sunday.
The former Boston Marathon winner seemingly glided along the 13.1-mile course at Walt Disney World Resort, which took runners through EPCOT and Magic Kingdom before ultimately finishing back at EPCOT amid cheers and shouts from fans who lined the finish line area. She was easily the first woman finisher, clocking a time of 1:16:27, nearly seven minutes in front of second-place finisher Brittany Truitt of Austin, Texas (1:23:14). Stephanie Muscat of Grand Rapids, Michigan (1:24:40) was third. Linden came down from her suburban Detroit, Michigan home to train in Florida ahead of a Saharan Desert ultra marathon.
Caleb Belmont of Tampa, Florida was the overall winner, hitting the finish line in 1:15:27 followed by Jorge Cruz of Austin, Texas (1:16:12) and Christopher Leonard of suburban Philadelphia.
The Princess-focused race was the finishing touch on a race weekend inspired by Disney Princesses Rapunzel, Merida, Belle and Moana who all embody fearless exploration. Throughout the race weekend, runners from across the country were immersed in all things related to Disney Princesses and encouraged to embrace their inner princess. In fact, there were Disney Princesses at every event, including the 5K on Friday, the 10K on Saturday and the half marathon on Sunday.
In addition, there was a daily health and fitness expo and an early-morning yoga event at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Next on the runDisney schedule is the runDisney Springtime Surprise Weekend, April 16-20 at Walt Disney World Resort. Themed around the power of friendship, the race weekend involves a 5K, a 10K and a 10-miler.
For more information on runDisney, visit www.runDisney.com.