ANAHEIM, Calif. (Sept. 4, 2011) – Humberto Rojas finished the Disneyland Half Marathon pretty much where he started – in first place. The 27-year-old from Fountain Valley, Calif., led the record field of nearly 15,000 registered runners virtually from wire to wire Sunday, crossing the finish line first with a time of 1:08:14.

Finishing just behind Rojas was Jesse Kleinjan, 27, of Chicago, IL, with a time of 1:12:13. Juan Arjona, 19, of Moreno Valley, Calif., finished third (1:12:54). But no one seriously challenged Rojas.

“It’s like being a little kid when you run out there (Disneyland),” Rojas said. “I live a couple miles away and I was like “how cool would it be to run inside Disneyland? It’s like a dream come true.”

Rachel Booth, 30, Mandeville, La., repeated as the women’s champion with a time of 1:18:01. Booth, who was using this event as a training run for the Olympic trials in January, was happy with her performance.

The women’s second-place finisher was Jennifer Boyd, 39, of Santa Paula, Calif. (1:23:17) followed by Susan Loken, 48, of Phoenix, Ariz. (1:23:43).

“I came to the race hoping I could pull something off,” said Booth, who used the race as part of her training for a possible spot on the U.S. Olympic team. “After last year I had to come back and see what I can do. There is nothing better than running through the theme parks, Castle and all the other fun things.”

Drew Carey, host of the popular game show “The Price is Right”, ran in the event and set a personal record of 1:50:46. He did it while recovering from a separated clavicle that occurred while training several weeks ago.

“I am glad I did it. It was really fun,’ Carey said. “I set a personal record by seven minutes – that’s good with a separated clavicle. (I’m) pretty happy considering.”

Other notable finishers were Kevin Broady, 49, of Brea, Calif., who won the men’s Master’s Division (age 40 and over) with a time of 1:13:03. Tracy Wright, 43, of San Diego, Calif., topped the women’s Master’s Division at 1:27:17. And Marc Aten, 37, of Moorpark, Calif., took the men’s wheelchair division at 1:02:21.

Whitney Henderson, from the San Francisco area, completed an amazing goal by running the Disneyland Half Marathon as part of a run that literally stretched from coast to coast. Henderson, 24, ran from Ft. Lauderdale, FL on June 1 to the Disneyland Half Marathon.

Captain Ivan Castro, an active duty soldier who lost his vision five years ago in an attack in Iraq, completed the 13.1 mile course with the help of a guide and a shoestring tied between them.

The Disneyland Half Marathon, the “Happiest Race on Earth, featured runners from 49 states and 23 countries who completed the course that weaved through the two Disneyland Resort theme parks – Disneyland and Disney California Adventure – and by Angel Stadium of Anaheim with hundreds of cheering fans, Disney characters, music and spectators along the way.

Participants who completed the half marathon received the newly created medal designed around Disneyland Resort’s iconic Sleeping Beauty Castle. In all, more than 20,500 runners participated in the weekend of events, setting an event record.