Nike takes over the NYT with a six-page love letter to runners

Nike has been crushing their marathon marketing of late.

The morning after the New York City Marathon, they took six full pages in New York Times and filled them with a relatable love letter to the runners who took part.

The opening spread, shared on Reddit, shows a mass of runners at the start line, paired with the dry line: “I ran 26.2 miles and all I got was my name in the paper.”

It nods to the annual ritual of scanning marathon results printed in the same newspaper.

The remaining pages are packed with a relentless list of everything a marathon throws at you: less sleep, shin splints, sunburn, existential dread, cramps, lactic acid, weird tan lines, Brooklyn crowds shouting your name, a hatred of stairs, and the familiar cocktail of pride, misery, adrenaline and joy.

 

For anyone that’s ever run a marathon – it’s funny, painful and recognisably true.

The final line lands perfectly: “I have this sinking, nagging, terrible, wonderful feeling that I’m going to do it all over again next year.”

During the 2025 Chicago Marathon, Nike showed up big – not just on feet, but on the streets.

The brand deployed a series of punchy, hyper-relatable OOH placements across the city, serving up motivational mantras tailor-made for runners hitting that wall (and Instagram).

 

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