11/26/2025
✨2025 Grand Marshals✨To honor and celebrate the 50th Annual Alexandria Turkey Trot, we are thrilled to announce three truly amazing and well-deserving Grand Marshals! Our first Grand Marshal is the Honorable James Clark, a respected, recently retired Circuit Court judge for the 18th Judicial Circuit Court of Virginia. As a third-generation Alexandrian and graduate of T.C. Williams High School (now Alexandria City High School), Judge Clark has a tie to the Turkey Trot that is unmatched: He ran in the very first Turkey Trot in 1975 and has run EVERY YEAR since then! Grand Marshals: Brian Danza and Paul Thompson
Our next two Grand Marshals are the individuals critically responsible for making the Turkey Trot the premier certified 5-mile race it is today, drawing record runners from around the globe.
Brian Danza and Paul Thompson served as Race Directors for the DC Road Runners for decades, and their contributions are legendary:
Brian Danza: Retiring after 15 years as Race Director, Brian brought professionalism, introduced chip timing, added pre-packet pick-up, and created the popular stroller and dog categories. He was the force behind our record-setting participation numbers.
Paul Thompson: Serving as Race Director for two decades, Paul modernized registration and brought the race into the modern age.
Simply put, the Alexandria Turkey Trot would not have reached its amazing popularity and participation levels without these two incredible leaders over the last 35 years. We are excited to have them in their Grand Marshal car at the beginning of this year’s race!
