Pelotonia 2025: Highlights from Ride Weekend in Columbus, Ohio
Pelotonia brought the energy to Columbus for the 2025 Ride Weekend. Watch top moments from an unforgettable ride supporting cancer research.
- Ohio State medical student Matthew Marquardt balances demanding studies with training for professional triathlons.
- Marquardt recently won an IRONMAN Pro Series competition in Lake Placid, New York.
- Marquardt’s primary focus remains his medical training, aiming for a career as a head and neck cancer surgeon.
Like other students at the Ohio State University College of Medicine, Matthew Marquardt dedicates hours to studying, medical rotations, classes and research.
Unlike other students, he also dedicates hours in the mornings and evenings to training for professional triathlon competitions.
Two weeks before Marquardt rode in his fourth Pelotonia Ride Weekend as captain of a team of medical students, the Spin Doctors, he crossed the finish line of an IRONMAN Pro Series competition in Lake Placid, New York.
And he won.
To many, what Marquardt has accomplished would feel like a pipe dream.
When the Cincinnati native was still in high school, he summited Mount Kilimanjaro. When he had an unexpected break from collegiate swimming while at Princeton University due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he biked across the country from San Diego to Jacksonville, Florida.
Beyond a propensity for accomplishing the seemingly impossible, a common thread runs through Marquardt’s journey — he has used his athletic feats to raise money and awareness for cancer patients and research.
It all started when he was training to climb Kilimanjaro, when one of his childhood friends was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), a blood cancer.
“While I was training, I was also watching her go through this treatment,” Marquardt said.
“I decided, ‘You know what? I want to try and raise some money for an organization of her choosing as a way to give her something else to think about besides the treatment.’ So, we decided to raise money for Make-A-Wish. And through a variety of different fundraisers, we raised over $6,000.”
A few years later, in the course of his 20-day trip across the country by bike, Marquardt raised over $15,500 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Pursuing passion and purpose
He attributes this ride to launching his career as an endurance athlete.
“I was now in my senior spring, and I was looking for something else to do and decided to train for a half IRONMAN just so that I kept myself busy until graduation,” he explained.
“At the time, my plan was only to do that one race and then be done with it because I had medical school coming up in the fall of 2021, and, like, any normal person believed that it was impossible to do triathlon and medical school at the same time.”
After receiving permission from the dean of the college of medicine and sponsorship from the James Cancer Hospital, Marquardt now represents the James at every professional IRONMAN event.
As a part of the sponsorship through Ohio State, he promotes the importance of cancer research and prevention, David Cohn, MD, MBA, COO of the James Cancer Hospital, said.
Noting that Marquardt manages a complicated life at an exceptional level in all aspects, Cohn said he was moved by a conversation he had with the triathlete following his July win in Lake Placid.
“He said that the most impactful thing of this entire experience — training for the race, winning the race and challenges during the race as well — was being able to be at the finish line for his colleagues and friends to provide them with their medals when they became an IRONMAN,” Cohn said.
“That speaks to his humanity.”
Cohn explained not only Marquardt’s participation in Pelotonia each year as a rider, but also that his placement in a Pelotonia-funded cancer research lab ties all the threads together.
As a rider, the student and athlete had raised $26,043 for Pelotonia as of early August 2025.
“That is kind of the main thing that drives me: the ability to make someone’s life a little bit better,” Marquardt said.
“Whether that’s what drives my research in terms of wanting to improve cancer care or that drives my studies in medical school… And then that also drives me in (a) triathlon.”
The medical student made a point to note that his medical training continued to be his first priority, and he hoped to secure an ear, nose and throat residency to prepare for a career as a head and neck cancer surgeon in the future.
“Obviously, I wish to be successful, and I’m motivated to be successful, but I wasn’t staying up at night daydreaming about how great it would be to win a race. My focus has always been and always will be on my research and medical school first,” he said.
This article was made possible by support from the Center for HumanKindness at The Columbus Foundation, which has partnered with The Columbus Dispatch to profile those making our community a better place. Help us inspire kindness by suggesting people, initiatives or organizations for Reporter Sophia Veneziano to profile. She can be reached at [email protected]. Learn more at Dispatch.com/Kindness. The Dispatch retains full editorial independence for all content.