THE U.S. OLYMPIC WOMEN’S MARATHON TEAM WILL RACE EACH OTHER IN NEW YORK CITY

The U.S. Olympic women’s marathon team will headline the Mini 10K on June 8. On Wednesday, the New York Road Runners announced that Fiona O’Keeffe, Emily Sisson, and Dakotah Lindwurm will be lining up at the 51st running of the historic women-only race in New York City’s Central Park.

The inaugural race was held in 1972 and was initially named the Crazylegs Mini Marathon. At the time, there was a dearth of racing opportunities for women, and the race was the brainchild of elite runners Nina Kuscsik and Kathrine Switzer, along with New York City Marathon co-director Fred Lebow. It’s said to have been the first ever women-only road racing competition. At the first event, 72 women crossed the finish line. Three weeks later, Title IX was signed into law, giving girls and women the right to play sports at school. (Fun fact: the race is named after the miniskirt, a symbol of women’s liberation.)

For O’Keeffe—the winner of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, who ran an event record (2:22:10) and the fastest ever marathon debut by an American woman—the New York Mini 10K will be her first road race since making history in Orlando, Florida, in February.

“It’s my first time running the Mini, and I’m looking forward to running alongside a great group of women, some of whom I’ll be seeing in Paris later this summer,” O’Keeffe said in a statement.

She’ll be joined by Sisson, who holds the American marathon record of 2:18:29 and finished second at the Trials to secure her spot on an Olympic team for the second time. She represented the U.S. in the 10,000 meters at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she placed 10th.

“The Mastercard New York Mini 10K is one of those special races that I always have circled on my calendar,” Sisson said of the race where she finished fourth last year. “Although my summer will look a little different this year with a marathon in Paris in August, I wouldn’t miss the chance to race with New York Road Runners in Central Park with my Olympic teammates and thousands of women from around the globe.”

Lindwurm, the third Team USA squad member, won the Grandma’s Marathon in both 2021 and 2022 and set a personal best of 2:24:40 at the Chicago Marathon in October. The Mini 10K has always been on her radar, but it hasn’t worked out previously with her racing and training schedule. This year, she said, “I’m really excited to join my Olympic teammates, Fiona and Emily, for the Mastercard New York Mini 10K.” Lindwurm continued, “it works as a great step toward the starting line in Paris.”

The full professional athlete field will be announced later this month, and the prize purse will include $39,500 total, including a check of $10,000 going to the winner of the open division.

For the first time, this year’s race will be broadcast on abcyny.com and ESPN+.

2024-05-08T15:06:50Z dg43tfdfdgfd