This year, the UW Medical Center (UWMC) is stepping down from title sponsorship of the Seattle Marathon and will instead serve as the official medical sponsor of the race. The UWMC was the title sponsor of the Seattle Marathon in 2006 and 2007.

“The UW wanted to participate at a level that was consistent with its mission — to provide health care and treatment,” UWMC spokesperson Tina Mankowski wrote in an e-mail.

The UWMC has provided health care for marathon runners for several years. It helped save a runner’s life last year when he had a medical emergency just a few yards before the finish line, said Louise Long, executive director of the Seattle Marathon Association.

“We’re excited to have the UWMC as our official medical sponsor,” Long wrote in an e-mail. “UWMC consistently provides excellent medical care to our race participants, and they are a wonderful asset to our event.”

The UWMC will also sponsor water stations and provide information about exercise and stretching at a pre-event talk.

“We are providing physicians and other healthcare providers to man the health care tent at the end of the race,” Mankowski wrote.

The loss of the UWMC as title sponsor won’t result in any serious lasting effects.

“We see it definitely as a win-win situation,” Long wrote. “UWMC’s decision to change its sponsorship role to official medical sponsor provided an opportunity for Amica Insurance to increase their level of sponsorship with us.”

According to Long, it’s common for events like the Seattle Marathon to change title sponsors.

“Oftentimes, events will have the same title sponsor for only one or two years before changing to another one,” she wrote. “It’s a standard part of the event business to have sponsorship changes.”

Long pointed out that sponsorship changes often have nothing to do with the event but are more a reflection of changing market strategies and emphasis with the sponsoring company.

The UWMC’s decision to withdraw its title sponsorship didn’t come as a surprise to the marathon organizers.

“We were very open with the Seattle Marathon Association, and they worked with us to find a level of participation and sponsorship that was consistent with our mission,” Mankowski wrote.

Several people were involved in the decision-making process, including the executive director of the UWMC.

“UW Medical Center openly discussed the change from title sponsor to medical sponsor with the Seattle Marathon Board of Directors and me prior to the decision being made,” Long wrote.

The UWMC plans to use the funds that would have gone toward sponsoring the marathon for other communication efforts, Mankowski wrote.

As far as the Seattle Marathon Association goes, the loss of the UWMC as title sponsor doesn’t seem to have had any dramatic effect on the race.

“We’re proud to have Amica Insurance as our new title sponsor of the Amica Insurance Seattle Marathon and the University of Washington Medical Center as our official medical sponsor,” Long wrote.

[Reach reporter Molly Rosbach at news@thedaily.washington.edu.]