ANNISTON — More than 900 runners took to the streets of Anniston on Aug. 1 as the 45th annual Publix Woodstock 5K returned to the historic Woodstock Avenue neighborhood, serving this year as the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) Alabama State 5K Championship.
Hosted annually since 1981, the race began and finished at Anniston High School and attracted 901 registered participants from across Alabama and surrounding states. The event has become one of the region’s longest-running road races and has previously hosted 19 RRCA championship races, including seven national championships, five regional championships and seven state championships.
The Publix Woodstock 5K is organized by the Anniston Runners Club, a local nonprofit organization. Proceeds from the event support organizations throughout northeast Alabama, including local school athletic programs and the Arc of Calhoun & Cleburne Counties, which serves individuals with disabilities.
The race also highlights Anniston’s running community. In 2022, the Road Runners Club of America designated Anniston as a Runner-Friendly Community.
This year’s overall men’s champion was Frank Kipruto, 23, of Huntsville, who competes for the University of Tennessee Southern. Kipruto crossed the finish line in 14 minutes, 51 seconds, finishing 46 seconds shy of the course record of 14:05.
Shadrack Kipkurgat of Jacksonville finished second overall in the men’s division, while Dakota Frank of Munford placed third.
In the women’s competition, Faith Nyathi, 26, of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, representing Middle Tennessee State University, claimed the overall title with a time of 17:08. Her performance finished 1 minute, 2 seconds off the course record of 16:06.
Rhi Price-Weimer of Starkville, Mississippi, earned second place in the women’s field, followed by Joanna Stephens of Dallas, Georgia, in third.
The 2026 race marked the first year Landon Delozier served as the event’s sole race director after joining the leadership team as co-director in 2025. Delozier is a teacher and coach at Oxford High School.
Publix returned as the event’s title sponsor after beginning its partnership with the race in 2025. The sponsorship expanded this year to include naming rights, financial support and post-race refreshments provided by the Publix Oxford catering team.
Race organizers said the annual event continues to promote distance running while providing financial support to organizations and athletic programs throughout northeast Alabama.
