IN PICTURES: MARATHON MELTDOWN CONTESTANTS HONORED FOR WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY

a group of people standing next to each other
The Weekly’s ‘Locked and Bloated’ (Alex Rickert, left, Javier Reyes and Patti Childress) put in a valiant effort but narrowly missed the podium, finishing in fourth place.

After 11 weeks of counting calories, pumping out sweat and trying their best to nix their bad health habits, the 2022 Marathon Meltdown contestants came together on July 7 to celebrate their achievements at the Meltdown awards ceremony. With incredible food provided by Bongos Botanical Beer Garden, the evening paid proper tribute to standout teams and contestants in the weight loss challenge – with a few more less-than-serious awards thrown in along the way. Thank you to all of our participants for your dedication, to all of the local restaurants who contributed prizes for our winners, and to Fishermen’s Community Hospital for teaming with the Weekly once again in a commitment to better health in our community.

Photos by Alex Rickert and Patti Childress

Alex Rickert
Alex Rickert made the perfectly natural career progression from dolphin trainer to newspaper editor in 2021 after freelancing for Keys Weekly while working full time at Dolphin Research Center. A resident of Marathon since 2015, he fell in love with the Florida Keys community by helping multiple organizations and friends rebuild in the wake of Hurricane Irma. An avid runner, actor, and spearfisherman, he spends as much of his time outside of work on or under the sea having civil disagreements with sharks.

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