Kathrine Switzer, 1967, at the Boston Marathon
Kathrine Switzer was the first female with an official number to cross the finish line of the Boston Marathon. She entered the race as K.V. Switzer in 1967, but did not clearly identify on the race form that she was female. She was was given a bib/race number, and was the first female with an official number to cross the finish line, even though officials tried to physically remove her from the race. She finished the race with a time of 4:20:00. It would not be until 1971 that women were allowed entry in sanctioned marathons. The first "official" female Boston Marathon finisher was Nina Kuscsik with a time of 3:10:26 in 1972.[1]
Other Notable Achievements[]
- 1974 New York City Marathon winner
- Avon Running Global Women's Circuit Founder and Director
- Inducted into the National Distance Running Hall of Fame, July 1998, Inaugural Class
- Inducted into the International Scholar-Athlete Hall of Fame, June, 2003
- Named "Runner of the Decade" (1966-77) and "One of the Visionaries of the Century" (2000) by Runner's World Magazine
- Received Abebe Bikila Award from New York Road Runners for worldwide contribution to running, 2003
- Received Pioneer Award in Sports Management from University of South Carolina's College of Sports and Entertainment Business for Avon International Running Circuit
Video Interview Clip[]
From Nzone Tonight. <videoflash>6_z0_qEA5II</videoflash>
Books[]
- Running and Walking for Women over 40: the Road to Sanity and Vanity, by Kathrine Switzer (1998)
- 26.2:Marathon Stories, by Kathrine Switzer and Roger Robinson (2006)
- Marathon Woman: Running the Race to Revolutionize Women's Sports, by Kathrine Switzer (2007)
See Also[]
External Links[]
- <ilink>http://www.kathrineswitzer.com KathrineSwitzer.com</ilink> - the official website of Kathrine Switzer
References[]
- ↑ Marathon Milestones. Boston Athletic Association. Retrieved on 2008-04-04.
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