Before that, they were hardly even allowed on the track. And before that, women in the US were prohibited from competing in runs of more than a few miles. In fact, US marathons had been open to women for only a decade. But the Olympics were a last barrier for female distance runners, making the first women’s marathon at the Games a major milestone. For much of the 20th century, America’s cinder tracks and open roads became unlikely battlegrounds for a handful of pioneering women runners who broke the gender barrier in races, showing that women can be athletes too, and helped to advance women’s civil rights. The history of women’s distance running is a largely untold story of triumph over discrimination. But on August 5th, there were a lot of firsts. No runner had ever attacked so early and won an Olympic marathon. When Joan Benoit Samuelson broke away from the lead pack at mile 3, it was a shocker. Until this day, women had never been allowed to run even a mile at the Games, much less a marathon. She is one of the founders of the Donna Marathon which is how we met each other! The Donna Marathon supports families walking through a breast cancer diagnosis through the Donna Foundation and it supports ground breaking research.On August 5, 1984, millions of people around the world watched the first ever women’s Olympic marathon live on ABC. She is the founder of the Beach to Beacon race. She won the Boston Marathon in 1979 while a college student and she won it again in 1983. She held the American record for 28 years in the marathon, 2:21:21, which she ran in Chicago. Joan Benoit Samuelson is an icon in our sport! Joan is the gold medalist from the first women’s Olympic marathon in 1984.
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