Rachel Villarreal, 5, worked up a sweat Saturday morning.
“Feel my forehead, Daddy,” the kindergartner said in between pants. “I’m hot.”
Rachel, of Bolingbrook, was among 1,500 children who participated in the third annual Dominick’s Youth Mile Run in Grant Park. The run is part of several events that celebrate the Chicago Marathon, set for 7:45 a.m. Sunday, and encourage future marathon runners.
The youth run, which started at 11 a.m., took the scrappy young foot soldiers around Buckingham Fountain before they burst through the finish line to a roar of applause at Congress and Columbus Drives.
All participants, ages 5 to 14, received medals. But the first three finishers were awarded trophies at an after-race party in the downtown Chicago Hilton and Towers.
Winning was a family affair for the Luginbills of Glen Ellyn. Sharon, 8, and her brother, Michael, 10, both placed first in their races.
“It was really competitive,” said Michael, a 5th grader. “I just waited until everybody stopped pushing and just passed them up.”
