BUFFALO, February 22, 2023 – The J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge was first held in New York City’s Central Park in 1977. It turned out to be a historic occasion, as the Corporate Challenge has gone on to be the world’s longest running and largest corporate sporting/social event.

But an equally important year was 1981 – when Buffalo became the first Corporate Challenge held outside of New York City.

“I’ve been told by my predecessors if Buffalo didn’t work that year, there may not be a Corporate Challenge Series today,” said Bob McArdle, Buffalo Market Executive, JPMorgan Chase Commercial Banking. “But, not surprisingly, Buffalo delivered on expectations and before long cities around the world wanted to take part.”

Indeed, and now on Thursday, June 15, Buffalo will enjoy its 41^st J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge, with a 6:25 p.m. race start at Delaware Park.

Companies may begin their registration now for the 3.5-mile run/walk, with an entry fee of $38 per person. Every entrant must be part of a company team, with each business in Western New York eligible to participate with a minimum of four entrants and no maximum.

But the miles covered on the neighboring roads to Delaware Park is just part of the story. The celebration follows in hundreds of hospitality tents within Delaware Park, with companies big and small marking the start of summer with camaraderie suitable for one of the nation’s most resilient and proud business communities.

“In addition to being the first road trip for the Corporate Challenge, we also had the first post-race party,” said McArdle. “It’s such a pleasure each year to look out over Delaware Park and see how this event brings together every industry group in Western New York.”

Hospitality reservations are being accepted now and please contact Buffalo@corpchallenge.jpmorgan.com or (716) 566-9916 to secure the exact right hospitality specs for your company.

This year’s J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge in Buffalo will be another step back to normality after the event took two sensible years off in 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 40^th running was held on June 16, 2022, with a reduced capacity crowd of 5,892 entrants from 206 companies.

The 2023 edition is eager to return to pre-pandemic popularity. The 2019 crowd was one of the largest in event history, 13,869 runners and walkers from 422 businesses.

An all-inclusive event open to all ages, job titles, and skill levels, the Corporate Challenge leaderboard also features official results in specific categories for athletes with disabilities and non-binary entrants.

The package is appealing to businesses large and small, from municipal to manufacturing to financial services and beyond. The 10 largest participating companies in 2022 were Ingram Micro (290 entrants), Buffalo City School District (218), Moog (204), Erie County Medical Center (154), ACV (149), Wegmans (127), HSBC (125), Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center (107), Independent Health Association (106), and M&T Bank (106).

The best of the best last year from the team perspective proved to be Moog, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Buffalo City School District, which won the men’s, women’s and mixed divisions respectively. Benjamin Cardamone of GP50 New York and Excelsior Orthopaedics’s Cassie Goodman were the men’s and women’s individual champions.

All entrants in the 2023 J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge will also have their efforts commemorated by a charitable donation by event owner and operator J.P. Morgan. The recipient of the donation will be announced in the coming weeks. Recent events have benefitted the Olmsted Parks Conservancy and Dnipro Ukrainian Cultural Center.

Buffalo will be the sixth overall stop on the 2023 J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge Series, and the second in Upstate New York following Rochester (May 25). The Series will run through November and ultimately visit 15 cities in eight countries on six continents. This will be the 47^th consecutive year of operation for the Series dating back to 1977, with 45 years of in-person racing and two years of Virtual participation during COVID.