Bix 7 Road Race

The Bix 7 Road Race is held annually in Davenport, Iowa, as a commemoration to Davenport native and jazz musician Bix Beiderbecke. It is followed a week later by the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival.

Race

The 7 mile road race is annually held during late July, in the streets of downtown Davenport, Iowa. The race was founded in 1975 by John Hudetz, a resident of Bettendorf, Iowa. After competing in the 1974 Boston Marathon, Hudetz was inspired to bring the excitement to the Quad-Cities with a race of his own. The inaugural race had a field consisting of eighty-four runners. Today the race is often run by 12,000 to 18,000 runners.

The United States’ boycott of the 1980 Olympics helped gain the Bix 7 exposure. Bill Rodgers, the world's top distance runner at the time, was unable to compete in Moscow, so he went to Davenport instead. The leadership of Race Director Ed Froehlich, promotion by the Quad-City Times newspaper, and generosity from several corporate sponsorships, has helped the Bix 7 develop into the largest non-marathon race in the Midwest, The race consistently draws elite talent from all over the globe. Running legends Bill Rodgers and 1984 Olympic Marathon Gold Medalist Joan Benoit Samuelson also compete yearly.

The run is primarily sponsored by the Quad City Times and is a separate entity from the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Society and the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival, which is held the following weekend. The race has several other sponsors, at the Platinum, Gold Medal, and contributing level respectively.

Champions

Edition	Year	Entries	Purse	USATF Championship	Men's Winner	Country	Time	Women's Winner	Country	Time
1	1975	84	$0		Lucien Rosa		34:33.8	Kim Merritt		41:04
2	1976		$0		Dan Copper		36:47			41:33
3	1977	350	$0		Kevin Mcdonald			Lynn Schmidt
4	1978	500	$0		John Lodwick		34:56	Kathy Loper		45:38
5	1979	800	$0		Gregg Newell		35:40	Ilene Kimsey		46:25
6	1980	1,500	$0		Bill Rodgers		33:58	Peggy Schott		43:59
7	1981	2,500	$0				33:26	Beverly Roland-Miller		41:26
8	1982		$0		Robert de Castella		32:45*	Ellen Hart		38:24
9	1983	5,620	$0		Joseph Nzau		33:10	Joan Benoit Samuelson		37:26
10	1984	6,750	$0		Ashley Johnson		33:06	Kellie Cathey		38:04
11	1985	7,174	$0		Mark Curp		32:56	Joan Benoit Samuelson		37:38
12	1986	9,325	$0		Geoff Smith		33:16			37:56
13	1987	12,372	$0		Joseph Nzau		33:24	Francie Larrieu Smith		38:10
14	1988	12,425	$0		Mark Curp		33:22	Joan Benoit Samuelson		37:59
Prize money offered
15	1989	15,639	$39,500		Mark Nenow		32:17	Erin Baker		36:35
16	1990	16,521	$39,250		Steve Kogo		32:47	María Trujillo		37:58
17	1991	18,124	$39,250		Ken Martin		32:21	Uta Pippig		37:04
18	1992	18,246	$60,000		Alejandro Cruz		32:21	Olga Markova	File:Olympic flag.svg Unified Team	36:48
19	1993		$39,000		Thomas Osano		32:10	Uta Pippig		36:27
20	1994	20,097	$40,000		Benson Masya		31:56	Tegla Loroupe		36:02
21	1995	18,354	$39,750		Phillimon Hanneck		32:08	Anne Hare		37:33
22	1996	18,108	$39,250		Peter Githuka		32:05	Hellen Kimaiyo		36:18
23	1997		$80,000		Khalid Khannouchi		32:54	Colleen De Reuck		37:34
Junior Bix Introduced
24	1998	22,143	$50,000		John Korir		31:51.99	Colleen De Reuck		36:38
25	1999	20,117	$48,200				32:59	Catherine Ndereba		37:30
26	2000	15,011	$49,800		Mark Yatich		32:31	Colleen De Reuck		36:42
Brady Street Sprint Introduced
27	2001	18,958	$45,000		John Korir		32:24	Catherine Ndereba		37:05
28	2002	19,658	$45,000	Yes	Meb Keflezighi		32:36	Colleen De Reuck		37:44
29	2003		$45,000		John Korir		32:34	Catherine Ndereba		37:12
30	2004	16,627	$45,000				32:36	Susan Chepkemei		35:24
31	2005	20,211	$45,000		Gilbert Okari		32:24	Nuța Olaru		36:53
32	2006		$45,000		Lawrence Kiprotich		32:13	Susan Chepkemei		37:35
33	2007		$45,000		Duncan Kibet		32:15	Wude Ayalew		36:57
34	2008	13,711	$45,000		Edward Muge		32:16	Edith Masai		37:20
35	2009	18,335	$50,000	Yes	Meb Keflezighi		32:25	Molly Huddle		37:39
36	2010	17,598	$50,000	Yes	Ryan Hall		32:55	Lisa Uhl		37:52
37	2011	18,057	$50,000		Silas Kipruto		32:36	Caroline Rotich		36:42
38	2012	18,138	$50,000				32:31	Margaret Muriuki		36:17
39	2013		$50,000		Leonard Korir		32:15	Sule Utura		36:34
40	2014		$50,000	Yes	Sean Quigley		33:28	Molly Huddle		36:14
41	2015	17,293	$50,000		Leonard Korir		33:06	Cynthia Limo		36:57
42	2016		$50,000		Silas Kipruto		33:03	Mary Keitany		35:18
43	2017		$50,000	Yes	Sam Chelanga		32:52	Aliphine Tuliamuk		36:30
44	2018				Belay Tilahun		32:37	Margaret Muriuki		35:57
45	2019				Leonard Barsoton		32:34	Joyciline Jepkosgei		36:04
	2020	In person race cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. Held as a virtual event.
46	2021			Yes	Leonard Korir		32:48	Edna Kiplagat		37:16
47	2022	6,086	$30,800	No	Patrick Tiernan		32:32	Fiona O'Keeffe		35:58
48	2023	~10,000	$50,000	Yes	Abbabiya Simbassa		32:34	Kellyn Taylor		36:32

External links

• Quad-City Times Bix 7
• Facebook Page
• 7 starting line 2010 YouTube By: Scott C. Holgorsen : Videographer Quad-Cities USA