“How fast can you run a mile?”. That question changed my life. Valerie Rogosheske. In 1969, the American was close to completing her Physical Education degree at St. Cloud State College when a friend of hers raised the question. Curious, she went to a running track to take her time, but she was shocked to realize that she couldn’t even complete that distance. She then decided to start training to change that reality and a couple of years later she made history. Because in 1972 the boston marathon admitted for the first time the official participation of women and she was one of the eight that disputed that edition of the testthe most mythical of the Six Majors of the specialty.
On the 50th anniversary of that unprecedented event, Rogosheske, from 75 years, will run again this Monday the most traditional 42,195 kilometers of athletics, although in a very different context from that of his first participation. because this year there will be 14 thousand women who will start the test. Val will be part of a women’s team of honor, along with seven other women who left their marks in different fields, from sports to human rights. She and she will also run alongside her daughters Abigail and Allie.
“Much has changed in 50 years. In 1972 there were 1,200 runners in total. And we went from eight women to 14 thousand -he commented-. Having my daughters here with me is special and very satisfying. When I was a girl I loved sports, but I thought women couldn’t compete. They had the opportunity to play sports at school and at the university. And more and more doors are opening. It’s really exciting to see how the next generation is encouraged to be active and strong.”
Valerie Rogosheske, with her daughters Abby and Allie, in 2017. Photo Valerie Rogosheske
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Rogosheske will be the only one of the “Boston Eight” –Nina Kuscik, Katherine Switzer, Elaine Pedersen, Ginny Collins, Pat Barrett, Frances Morrison y Sara Mae Berman were the others – which will start the race this Monday. His presence revolutionized the previous one and gave him the opportunity to remember in detail how he had arrived at that edition half a century ago.
“I was really embarrassed when I realized I couldn’t run a full mile. So I got a book called ‘Jogging’I read it and started running several times a week. From time to time I had a hard time getting out the door, so Phil (NdR: Her husband, an outstanding athlete and Olympic rower) he told me: ‘What you need is a goal’“he counted.
“It was 1971. We lived in Virginia and the only race I had ever heard of was the Boston Marathon. But I had read about women who hid in the bushes and then went running, because they couldn’t do it officially. And I think: ‘That seems like a good thing’. Perhaps my activism was already coming to life. So I started doing more and more miles and really preparing for a marathon,” Valerie said.
Nina Kuscik, Kathy Switzer, Elaine Pedersen, Ginny Collins, Pat Barrett, Frances Morrison, and Sara Mae Berman, seven of the “Boston Eight.” Photo Boston Athletic Association
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Rogosheske planned to follow that same strategy: hide until he heard the starting gun and then join the men. He had done so in 1966 Bobbi Gibb, the first woman to unofficially run that marathon. And a year later the same Switzer, whose image fighting with the officials who tried to remove her from the circuit when discovered became famous.
But Val she didn’t need to duck: two weeks before the race, the Boston Athletic Association officially opened registration for women. And she was one of eight who signed up.
“When they officially welcomed us, I was a little disappointed. I was so focused on being that woman who hides in the bushes and runs,” she said.
She admitted: “Women like Nina and Kathrine had been working for it for years. I just showed up and took advantage of it. For a while I felt a little embarrassed, but now I accept it. We need activists to create more opportunities, but we also need people to show up “.
His preparation was not ideal: after his marriage in December, he spent a month with mononucleosis and could not train. But still, at 25 years old and with the F7 number, she managed to complete the distance and finished sixth among the eight competitors, with a time of 4h29m32. The victory went to Kuscik, with 3h10m26.
“I finished it with the feeling that I could do better,” said Rogosheske, who ran the event again in 1973 and 1974, when he set his best time: 3h09m38.
He was also present at the 25th anniversary of his first participation, but left halfway through due to a knee problem. In this 2022, his goal is to cross the finish line. And just like she did 50 years ago, when she first set out to run this marathon, she’s determined to do it.
The oldest marathon returns to its usual date
Some 30,000 runners will start this Monday the 126th edition of the Boston Marathon, the oldest in the world, which will return to its usual date after three years, after the coronavirus pandemic forced the test to be canceled in 2020 and moved to the fall of Northern Hemisphere last year (held on October 11).
Beyond the special participation of Valerie Rogosheske, some of the best marathoners in the world will perform on the streets of that Massachusetts city.
In the female category, the figure to beat is the Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir, current champion in Boston, Olympic gold in Tokyo and winner last November in New York. Other prominent figures among women will be Joyciline JepkosgeiKenyan winner in London 2021, and the Ethiopian Edna Kiplagat42, champion in 2017 and Jepchirchir’s escort last year.
Among men, the great candidate is the Kenyan Benson Kipruto, champion in Boston six months ago with a mark of 2h09m51. Although the defender of the title will not lack rivals.
Because his compatriots are also on the starting line Albert Korirwinner last year in New York, and Evans Chebetwho two years ago sealed the best time of 2020, with 2h03 in Valencia, and who has not dropped from third place in this distance since 2017. And the Ethiopians Birhanu Legesedouble winner of the Tokyo Marathon, and Sisay Lemmachampion in London 2021.
The event, which joins New York, Chicago, Berlin, London and Tokyo on the list of Six Majorswill be held within the framework of the festivities of the patriots dayas is the tradition since its first edition, in 1897. It will distribute 706 thousand dollars in prizes. The winners will take 150 thousand each one.
The first categories will start at 9:02 local time (10:02 in Argentina), while the male professional will start at 10:37 in our country and the female, eight minutes later. The tour has a starting point in the center of the city of Hopkinton and ends in Boylston Streetin the heart of Boston, in the vicinity of the imposing Public Library of that city, one of the largest in the United States.
HS
