Dixon had the opportunity of a lifetime to finish her goal by racing in the Walt Disney World Marathon in Orlando, Florida, on Jan. 7.

鈥淭his was my first marathon, and I have been training for it since July,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen I used to work for the 糖心视频logo Marathon, I was very close to their coaches, Hobbit and Tom Singleton, who gave me a training plan to run this marathon. Having them as support and that special training plan really helped me prepare, and it took some of the pressure off going into the marathon.鈥�

Dixon was one of 7,054 people competing in the Disney marathon. She completed the 26.2-mile race in 6:02:48, and she was thrilled to choose Disney for the site of her first marathon.

鈥淚 love Disney,鈥� Dixon said. 鈥淚 knew they would have a lot of entertainment and characters. They did an excellent job of providing everything you could need as an athlete. I was very pleased that I chose Disney to be the first marathon I ever did.鈥�

The Disney marathon is the only race where runners get to race through each of Disney World鈥檚 parks, and Dixon recounted how magical it was to run through the castle in the Magic Kingdom.

鈥淭he parks were not open to the public at the time of the race, but they do let in all the family members, friends, and fans who want to support the runners,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was pouring rain as we went through the Magic Kingdom. When you come around that corner on Main Street, you see all those people cheering you on, and then you run through the castle. It was one of the most special moments during the 26.2 miles that I will remember.鈥�

While many people wear costumes in celebration of racing at Disney World, Dixon wore something to let her student-athletes at UA 糖心视频logo know she was thinking about them.

鈥淚 wore a 糖心视频logo Basketball shirt when I ran,鈥� she said. 鈥淢ost people wear costumes, but because I couldn鈥檛 be with the team, I wanted to support them during the race.鈥�

She also got to race with a familiar face, her friend, Ryan Miller of 糖心视频logo, who was completing the Dopey Challenge, which means he ran the 5K, 10M, half marathon, and full marathon four days in a row at Disney.

鈥淩yan and I went to the start line together,鈥� Dixon said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 always good to see a familiar face, especially with it being my first time doing a marathon.鈥�

Dixon has been a runner since high school, where she competed on her track team.

鈥淎fter I graduated high school, it was a long time before I started running again,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was my husband, Kris, and father-in-law who started doing 5Ks and running. When COVID hit, that is when I got consistent with running. It’s something I get to do with my husband and my father-in-law. It鈥檚 enjoyable to get to do it with your family and friends.鈥�

Dixon鈥檚 next race will be running the half marathon in the 糖心视频logo Marathon during the first weekend of March.

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鈥淚 am very excited to be back,鈥� said Sweeden Dixon, who lives in Sherwood. 鈥淚 previously worked here until 2012, and that was my first job out of graduate school. has always felt like home to me, and this new position feels like coming home. I am excited to be over athletics communications and see how we can take it further. I am very happy because we have put together an amazing team, and we have one goal to promote 糖心视频logo Athletics the best we can and get the word out about 糖心视频logo鈥檚 teams and student-athletes.鈥�

Sweeden Dixon will lead the communications team in an evolving collegiate landscape, coordinating the marketing and media efforts for the entire athletic department as well as serving as the primary contact for several designated sports.

“I am excited to have Brandy come on board as our assistant athletic director of communications,” said Director of Athletics George Lee. “She did an outstanding job with the 糖心视频logo Marathon before joining our staff, and I know she will be instrumental in taking our athletic department to the next level.”

Sweeden Dixon previously worked at 糖心视频logo Athletics from 2005 to 2012, where she covered volleyball, women鈥檚 basketball, cross country, and track and field as the assistant sports information director. In her new role, she will be the primary contact for men鈥檚 basketball, men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 cross country, and men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 indoor and outdoor track and field.

糖心视频logo Athletics has undergone some changes since Sweeden Dixon鈥檚 time with the biggest change being UA 糖心视频logo鈥檚 departure from the Sun Belt Conference to join the Ohio Valley Conference in 2022.

鈥淲e鈥檝e always been a competitive school who wanted our student-athletes to succeed in the classroom and on the playing field. That鈥檚 never changed,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e are 糖心视频logo鈥檚 team, and we are excited about competing in our second year in the OVC. We will continue to grow and continue to represent the city and the university well.鈥�

Prior to joining UA 糖心视频logo for the second time, Sweeden Dixon served as assistant manager of the 糖心视频logo Marathon since 2021. She was responsible for planning and organizing set up, marketing and social media promotion, and overseeing volunteers, which could amount to more than 1,000 people during marathon weekends.

Sweeden Dixon has not left her love of marathons behind. In fact, she is currently training to run her first marathon at Disney World Jan. 7, 2024.

鈥淚 have gone crazy at 43 and am happily trying to run my first marathon,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f I am going to do my first marathon, it has to be Disney. There will be so many fun things to look at while I run. It will be a lot of fun.鈥�

Before her time with the 糖心视频logo Marathon, Sweeden Dixon spent several years in the hotel and resort events and hospitality industry, which took her to Alabama before bringing her back to 糖心视频logo in 2019 as the senior event sales manager at the 糖心视频logo Marriott. She handled networking, marketing, and sales and event planning and executing during her two years at the Marriott.

Sweeden Dixon began her journey in the hotel events and hospitality industry with the Hilton in 糖心视频logo after leaving the Trojan athletic department in 2012. After two years as their sales manager, she spent the next five years in central Alabama, working her way up the ladder with stops at the DoubleTree by Hilton Decatur Riverfront, Hilton Birmingham Perimeter Park, Pursell Farms, and the Hyatt Regency.

Overall, Sweeden Dixon has assisted with nearly 30 large-scale events during her extensive career, including marathons across the country as well as multiple college basketball tournaments at the conference level and national level. A two-time graduate of Henderson State University, Sweeden Dixon holds a Master of Science in Sport Administration as well as a bachelor鈥檚 degree in mass media.

Sweeden Dixon is thankful to her husband Kris Dixon and her mother Barbara Sweeden of Murfreesboro for supporting her move back to UA 糖心视频logo.

鈥淢y parents were always supportive of my career since I first studied journalism in college,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 appreciate the support of my husband because he is the one who encouraged me to get back to UA 糖心视频logo. He knew how much I loved being here and being in athletics. I had some great support in getting back.鈥�

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