A lot has changed in the Canal District over the past 20 years.
Restaurants and apartments have moved in. Old buildings have found new lives. The neighborhood itself has gone from a place many Worcester residents once drove through to one that increasingly gives them a reason to stop.
Through all of it, one Saturday morning tradition has kept running.
The Canal Diggers Road Race returns Sept. 12 for its 20th year, bringing runners, walkers, families and volunteers back to the neighborhood for a 5K, kids run and anniversary celebration centered at Fiddler’s Green at the Hibernian Cultural Center, 19 Temple St.
And for the milestone year, organizers are bringing in one of the biggest names in American distance running.
Four-time Boston Marathon winner Bill Rodgers attends the race and takes part in the anniversary celebration, according to an announcement from race organizers.
Rodgers, an Olympian and former marathon record holder, won the Boston Marathon four times, including three consecutive victories from 1978 through 1980. He also won the New York City Marathon four straight years, from 1976 through 1979.
His appearance adds some star power to a race that organizers say has always been rooted in something much closer to home.
“For 20 years, this race has brought together competitive runners, families, volunteers and neighbors who take tremendous pride in Worcester and the Canal District,” Race Chair Tammy Bailey said. “It has all the traditions people look forward to each year, along with a course that attracts runners ready to test their pace. Reaching this milestone gives us one more reason to run and celebrate together.”
The race began as a neighborhood event and has grown alongside the Canal District itself, becoming a recurring fixture as the area developed into one of Worcester’s busiest entertainment and residential neighborhoods.
Race day will begin with pre-race ceremonies at 9:20 a.m., followed by the Kids Fun Run at 9:30. The 5K steps off at 10:30 a.m.
Afterward, runners and spectators can return to the Hibernian Cultural Center for food, refreshments, live entertainment and an anniversary celebration. Beer will be available for guests 21 and older, with non-alcoholic beverages also served.
Mass General Brigham Health Plan returns as the event’s premier sponsor, while Atlas Distributing is supporting race-day beverages.
The event is organized entirely by volunteers, with as many as 100 people helping on race day, according to organizers.
That volunteer effort has helped the race become more than a competition.
Over its first 20 years, the Canal Diggers 5K has donated more than $50,000 to local nonprofit organizations.
“This race has always been about more than finishing times,” Race Co-Chair Brendan Moran said in the announcement. “Every registration, sponsorship and volunteer hour helps us give back to organizations serving our community. After 20 years and more than $50,000 in donations, we are proud of the distance we have covered, and we are not slowing down.”
For runners who cannot make it to Worcester on race day, organizers are again offering a virtual 5K. Participants may complete the distance and submit their times between Sept. 7 at 9 a.m. and Sept. 11 at noon, with the virtual winner announced on race day alongside the in-person winners.
The first 600 registered participants, whether taking part in person or virtually, will receive a commemorative long-sleeved race shirt.
The 20th anniversary also offers organizers a chance to look back at a race that has managed to endure while the neighborhood around it changed dramatically.
What started as a local 5K has become part athletic competition, part neighborhood reunion and part fundraiser — a morning when serious runners can chase a fast time while families, longtime participants and volunteers gather around the same finish line.
And this year, with Rodgers on hand and two decades behind it, organizers are giving the Canal Diggers race a little extra room to celebrate how far it has come.
The Canal Diggers 5K and Kids Fun Run will take place Saturday, Sept. 12, beginning and ending at Fiddler’s Green at the Hibernian Cultural Center, 19 Temple St. Pre-race ceremonies begin at 9:20 a.m., the Kids Fun Run starts at 9:30 a.m. and the 5K begins at 10:30 a.m.
