A 7-year-old girl from Kettering who once relied on a feeding tube just to get enough nutrients will soon be cheering on thousands of runners from her own themed float. Zoe Rupp has been chosen as one of 24 Marathon Mile Champions for this year's Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon, set for Sunday, October 18.
Zoe was born with a genetic deletion that makes everyday eating a struggle. According to WHIO, she doesn't chew properly, and chewing foods have always been hard for her. For a stretch of time, that meant Zoe depended on a feeding tube to get the nutrients her body needed, rather than eating meals the way most kids do.
That changed after treatment at Nationwide Children's Hospital, where doctors helped her reach a milestone her family had been working toward for years: getting all of her nutrients in by mouth instead of through her tube, per the same report. The progress didn't come without sacrifice. Zoe and her mom spent time at the Ronald McDonald House, separated from her dad and brother, over the summer of 2025 while Zoe was being treated at Nationwide.
A Float Built Around Courage
Now Zoe gets to turn that chapter into something celebratory. She's in charge of creating a theme for her float, and she chose the Katy Perry song “Roar,” the station reports. Her mom said the song is about courage and bravery — a fitting soundtrack for a kid who has spent years pushing through difficult treatment.
Zoe's full designation in the marathon's own program lists her as a Mile Champion representing pediatric feeding disorder, according to a PR Newswire release on the marathon's fundraising. She'll join the rest of this year's Mile Champions scattered along the route, each one a patient who has been treated at Nationwide Children's Hospital.
Why the Marathon Dedicates Its Miles to Kids
The concept behind the Mile Champions program is simple: put a child's face and story on part of the course so runners have something to push toward besides the finish line. At every mile of the marathon, Mile Champions will be cheering on the runners, meant to act as an inspiration as competitors run over 26 miles throughout Columbus, WHIO notes. The race begins at North Bank Park in downtown Columbus, according to the Columbus Marathon's own event page.
It's not a one-year gesture. Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon organizers say this year's event will welcome a brand new set of Marathon Mile Champions alongside returning past champions honored in an Alumni Mile, according to the marathon's FAQ page. Past champions have included Gahanna's Hannah Daubenmire, who was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare type of bone cancer, after knee imaging at Nationwide Children's revealed the condition, as previously reported by NBC4.
A Growing Fundraising Partnership
The marathon's ties to Nationwide Children's go well beyond the mile markers. The race and its partners raised more than $1.4 million for the hospital in 2025 alone, including a $200,000 donation from the Marathon Board, per the PR Newswire release. Since 2012, the partnership between the marathon, Nationwide Children's Hospital and Nationwide has generated more than $15 million in support for the hospital.
For Zoe's family, though, the bigger picture comes down to one kid on one float, finally able to celebrate a milestone that once felt far away. Come October 18, she'll be watching thousands of runners pass by, soundtracked by a Katy Perry anthem her mother says is all about courage and bravery.
