SOUTH PORTLAND – In 2004, Julie Marchese faced her toughest challenge. Marchese was diagnosed with breast cancer. Now, in 2012, Marchese will once again serve as an organizer for the Tri For a Cure triathlon, an event that she co-founded in 2008 to raise money for cancer research.

Once again, Southern Maine Community College will sponsor the event.

“SMCC has be a gracious sponsor over the last five years,” said Marchese. “They have been tremendous partners. We hope to be leaving it there for a long time. The people that live there in South Portland do a great job supporting the event and raising money for the athletes.”

The triathlon is a women-only event that this year will boast between 850-1,100 participants taking on a course that includes a 1/3-mile swim at Spring Point Head Light followed by a 15-mile bike ride through Cape Elizabeth and South Portland before concluding with a 5K run through Bug Light and back to the finish line on the SMCC campus. Participants can also compete as a two- or three-member team, with each member completing one or two legs.

If all goes well, Mari Miya of Pownal will complete her fifth Tri for a Cure on Sunday. And like she has for the past four years, she expects to break down and cry when she comes across the finish line.

“It’s a combination of completing it and thinking of those people I’ve lost to cancer,” explains Miya, 63, who is herself a cancer survivor. “It’s a feeling of elation, of accomplishment, and it’s also humbling to be part of this incredible effort.”

Marchese, 53, was inspired to create the event after her diagnosis in 2004.

“After I was diagnosed, I challenged myself to do a triathlon with seven friends,” said Marchese. “After that, I was hooked.”

She completed her triathlon in 2006 and pitched the Tri For a Cure idea to the Maine Cancer Foundation in 2008, as an alternative to the golf tournament the group was then holding. Marchese co-founded the event with fellow committee member and tri-athlete Abby Bliss.

“At first, we thought we would be lucky to get 250 people,” said Marchese. “Instead, we sold out the event.”

Since its inception, the Tri for a Cure has gone from raising $250,000 to taking in more than $1 million each year. event has consistently ranked as the top-grossing single-day fundraiser for the Maine Cancer Foundation. The money raised goes to all forms of cancer research and stays within Maine.

“It’s Maine women working for a single cause, and all the money stays right here,” said Marchese. “It’s perfect.”

The overwhelming support for the Tri for a Cure stems from the combination of supporting a great cause and the awareness it brings for physical fitness. For Marchese, the event represents much more than merely a test of physical endurance.

“I think the race is a hope for women and a hope for cancer,” said Marchese. “There are no words to express what it’s like to be at the event.”

A triathlon may feel like a daunting task, but veteran participants say that it is not strictly for competitive athletes.

“For 70-80 percent of participants, this is their first triathlon ever,” said Meredith Strang Burgess, who has participated each of the last four years. “First they say, ‘Oh my God, I can’t believe I’m doing this.’ Then they say, ‘Oh my God, I can’t believe I just did that.’”

Burgess holds a special distinction in each year’s race. Being a cancer survivor, she starts with the first wave of swimmers. But she will not cross the finish line until the last runner/walker has finished ahead of her. She purposely finishes last to support those who may be lagging behind or may feel as if they can’t complete the race. Burgess was a competitive swimmer in college, but now she revels in the chance to support others. She got the idea to finish last during her first triathlon in 2006 in Massachusetts. She says she pedaled up beside a biker who had gotten off her bike and was despairing that she wasn’t going to make it.

“We walked up the hill together and I told her, ‘You’ve already won your race. You’re here!’ That’s how I feel now,” she said. “I’ve already won my race.”

Entering the water at the Tri for a Cure.