Special Olympics Pennsylvania will kick off its 36th annual Fall Festival this weekend with the 15th annual Unified Fall Festival Torch Run presented by tri-state Toyota dealers.

The Torch Run is a 28-mile non-competitive run consisting of 18 legs from the Courtyard Philadelphia South to the Navy Yard to Villanova University.

Hundreds of runners representing law enforcement officers, Special Olympics PA athletes, unified student partners, event sponsors, civic leaders and many other community members will participate and gather for a short ceremony before beginning the long and inspiring journey of 28 miles to Villanova.

The race will take place on Friday, Nov. 1, starting at 9:25 a.m. at the Courtyard Philadelphia South at the Navy Yard, arriving at Villanova University at 3 p.m. A complete map of the Torch Run route can be found online.

This year is enjoying record participation and support: 24 different law enforcement agencies, more than 225 participants and nearly $60,000 raised.

The 28-mile race will be divided into 18 segments – ranging from half a mile to 3½ miles – with participants running their segment before passing the torch to the next group.

The Unified Run will begin at Courtyard Philadelphia South in the Navy Yard before making its way through South and Downtown Philadelphia and University City/West Philadelphia to the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

After traversing nearly 13 miles of the city, the race heads west via MLK Boulevard/West River Drive into Bala Cynwyd and through the heart of the main line to Villanova.

Launch program speakers and guests include SOPA athlete Gabe Davis; Tri-State Toyota Dealers President Paul Muller; SOPA President and CEO Matt Aaron; Bob White, chairman of the board of the Families Behind the Badge Children’s Foundation; State Attorney General Michelle Henry; Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel (interim); and the Philadelphia Eagles mascot, Swoop.

Participating law enforcement teams include the Philadelphia Police Department, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, the Department of Homeland Security, the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole, the State Inspector General’s Office, the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Department, the University of Pennsylvania Police Department, Drexel University Police, Upper Darby Police, Philadelphia ATF Office, Philadelphia FBI Office, Pennsylvania State Police, Lower Merion Police Department, Upper Merion Police Department, Radnor Police Department, West Chester PD, DEA, US Marshals Service , Villanova University Police Department and more.

Torch Run sponsors include tri-state Toyota dealers, Families Behind the Badge Children’s Foundation, Haverford Trust, Colligas Family Markets (ShopRite) and more.

Special Olympics Pennsylvania provides year-round training and competition in 21 Olympic-type sports to more than 15,000 children and adults with intellectual disabilities or closely related developmental disabilities.

For more information on joining the ‘inclusion revolution’ visitwww.specialolympicspa.org.