That’s what they told Kathrine Switzer. She disagreed, the first woman to run Boston in 1967.
… on that bus were co-race directors Will Cloney and Jock Semple. …
Jock was well known for his violent temper. He seethed for awhile, and then he erupted. He jumped off the bus and went after me. I saw him just before he pounced, and let me tell you, I was scared to death. He was out of control. I jumped away from him as he grabbed for me, but he caught me by the shoulder and spun me around, and screamed, ‘Get the hell out of my race and give me that race number.’ I tried to get away from him but he had me by the shirt. It was like being in a bad dream. Arnie tried to wrestle Jock away from me but was having a hard time himself and then Tom, my 235-pound boyfriend came to the rescue and smacked Jock with a cross body block and Jock went flying through the air.
At first, I thought we had killed him. I was stunned and didn’t know what to do, but then Arnie just looked at me and said, ‘Run like hell,’ and I did as the photographers snapped away and the scribes recorded the event for posterity. …
The Real Story of Kathrine Switzer’s 1967 Boston Marathon
… Switzer was the women’s winner of the 1974 New York City Marathon, with a time of 3:07:29 (59th overall).Her personal best time for the marathon distance is 2:51:37, at Boston in 1975. …
She was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2011 for creating a social revolution by empowering women around the world through running. …
Switzer was named Female Runner of the Decade (1967-77) by Runner’s World Magazine and received an Emmy for her work as a television commentator.
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