Which U.S. state contains Liberal, the city that races Olney on International Pancake Day? Kansas.
Liberal is a city in southwestern Kansas, near the Oklahoma border. Its annual Pancake Day race is paired with a longstanding race in Olney, England, creating an unusual transatlantic competition associated with Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday.
The tradition began in Olney in 1445, according to the town’s customary account, when a woman reportedly ran to church carrying a frying pan after realizing she was late. Liberal began its own race in 1950, and the two communities have compared times ever since, although the format and participation have varied.
A common mix-up is assuming Liberal lies in Missouri, Oklahoma, or Nebraska because all three states are geographically nearby. Liberal is in Kansas; it is also the seat of Seward County and one of the state’s best-known cities for its pancake-racing tradition.