ANAHEIM, Calif., March 15 /PRNewswire/ -- The Disneyland Resort announced today that Kaiser Permanente will be the presenting sponsor for its inaugural Half Marathon Weekend that kicks off six months from today.

The weekend events, to be held in partnership with the City of Anaheim from Sept 15-17, will build off the successful 13-year history of Walt Disney World Marathon Weekends that are operated by Disney's Wide World of Sports in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. More than 8,000 runners have already signed up to participate.

"We're thrilled Kaiser Permanente has chosen to join the team," said Mike Millay, director of sports events for Disney Sports Attractions. "With just six months to go, we are pleased to report that 80% of our runner sign up goal has been achieved with participants coming to Anaheim from every state in the U.S. and many other countries."

"The Disneyland Half Marathon is the perfect setting for our message about the importance of good health," said Ed Ellison, MD, Medical Director for Kaiser Permanente in Orange County. "This will be a beautiful weekend event filled with fun and physical activity for the participants and spectators alike. We hope that everyone involved will be inspired to live well and thrive."

Kaiser Permanente will provide its medical expertise to meet the needs of the runners and those who come to watch. Physicians and other health professionals from Kaiser Permanente will be onsite to handle any medical emergencies that might arise. In addition, Kaiser Permanente volunteers will staff water stations located strategically along the half marathon course. Volunteers will also come through a partnership with Anaheim Community Foundation which will receive a portion of the proceeds from the three-day event.

The feature event of the weekend will be a 13.1-mile "Happiest Race on Earth" road race on Sunday, Sept. 17th that will start on Disneyland Drive, run through Disney's California Adventure and into Disneyland Park where runners will cruise around such world-renowned attractions as the Matterhorn and Sleeping Beauty Castle. The race continues on to the Arrowhead Pond then along the Santa Ana Trail to Angel Stadium of Anaheim and back to the finish line near the ESPN Zone in Downtown Disney.

Other weekend events will include the Disneyland Health & Fitness Expo presented by Kaiser Permanente at the Disneyland Hotel (Sept. 15-16) and the Disneyland Family Fun Run 5K & Kids Races presented by Kaiser Permanente (Sept. 16). The Disneyland Health and Fitness Expo presented by Kaiser Permanente, which will feature celebrity runner appearances, the latest trends in running apparel, technology and fitness equipment along with seminars on training, racing and nutrition, will be open to the public with no admission charge. Registration fees are $85 for the half marathon, $25 for the Family Fun run 5K and $5 for the kids' races. Registration for the half marathon, kids' races and 5K are still available online at http://www.disneylandhalfmarathon.com/. Special Anaheim-area hotel rates and reservations and Disneyland theme park ticket options will be available through the Disneyland Resort for the Half Marathon Weekend.

About the Disneyland Resort

Located on approximately 500 acres in Anaheim, Calif., the Disneyland Resort includes the Disneyland(R) and Disney's California Adventure(TM) theme parks, three hotels with a total of 2,224 rooms and the 310,000 square foot Downtown Disney(R) retail, restaurant and entertainment district. With 20,000 employees, the Disneyland Resort is Orange County's largest employer and a $3.6 billion annual contributor to the local economy. In January 2004, the Resort welcomed its 500 millionth Guest since opening on July 17, 1955. On May 5, 2005, Disney theme parks launched an 18-month celebration in honor of the 50th anniversary of Disneyland. This global event is the largest in Disney theme park history. For detailed information about the Disneyland Resort and the 50th anniversary celebration, please visit http://www.disneylandnews.com/ or our podcast at http://www.disneyland.com/podcast. For more information about Disneyland Resort community programs visit http://www.disneyland.com/publicaffairs.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is America's leading integrated health plan. Kaiser Permanente's Southern California Region is a nonprofit, group practice prepayment program headquartered in Pasadena, California. Kaiser Permanente serves the health care needs of 3.1 million Southern California members from Bakersfield to San Diego. It encompasses the nonprofit Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and their subsidiaries, and the for-profit Southern California Permanente Medical Group. Kaiser Permanente's Southern California Region includes more than 47,000 technical, administrative and clerical employees and caregivers, and more than 5,000 physicians representing all specialties.

CONTACT: Barbara Shipnuck of Kaiser Permanente, +1-714-748-6381; or Bob
Tucker of Disneyland Resort, +1-714-781-4614

Web site: http://www.disneyland.com/
http://www.disneylandhalfmarathon.com/