Molly Huddle to Make Marathon Debut at 2016 TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday, November 6
Huddle
to run as NYRR Team for Kids Ambassador, supporting NYRR’s free youth
running programs, and to pace Girls’ Run at NYRR New York Mini 10K on
Saturday, June 11
TCS
New York City Marathon total prize purse of $803,000 to include USA
Division for both men’s and women’s professional runners for first time
in a decade
New York, June 9, 2016
ÛÓ Reigning
U.S. 10,000-meter champion Molly Huddle will make the jump to the
marathon for the first time in her career when she makes her highly
anticipated 26.2-mile debut at the 2016
TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday, November 6, it was announced
today by Peter Ciaccia,
president of events for New York Road Runners and race director of the TCS New York City Marathon.
“Molly is one of
the most gifted runners in the USA, and she’s already had fantastic
success in NYRR races on the streets of New York City,” Ciaccia said.
“She joins an amazing group of women who have made
their marathon debuts in New York City, from American stars such as
Deena Kastor, Shalane Flanagan and Kara Goucher to global greats such as
Grete Waitz and Mary Keitany. We are thrilled to have Molly take the
next step in her running career in New York this
November, and are excited that it coincides with the introduction of
our USA division prize purse.”
Huddle, 31, resides in
Providence, RI, and she is the two-time defending champion in the United Airlines NYC Half, having
won the 2016 edition of the event by eight hundredths of a second
against Kenya’s Joyce Chepkirui. She broke her own event record and
American record for an all-women’s race in the process, clocking in at
1:07:41. She is
a 21-time national champion who competed over 5000 meters at the 2012
London Olympics and will try to earn a ticket to the 2016 Rio Olympics
when she competes at July’s U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Eugene, OR. Last
year, she won six national titles ÛÓ 5K, 10K,
12K, 10-mile, and 20K on the road and 10,000 meters on the track. She
also finished fourth in the 10,000 meters at the IAAF World
Championships.
“It’s with excitement that I am going to run my
first marathon this fall, and I am honored and delighted to do so at the
TCS New York City Marathon,” Huddle said. “As a native New Yorker and
someone who has watched my training partners
race through the city many times in the past, I felt like New York has
been calling to me for many seasons.
“It feels like running a marathon is a rite of
passage as a distance runner, and with my strength work going better
than ever, I finally feel ready to tackle that distance on a course and
in a city whose grit and vibrancy inspire me. I
always love running NYRR races from one mile up to 13.1, and by now the
city feels like a home course.”
In running the 2016 TCS New York City Marathon as an NYRR Team for Kids Ambassador, Huddle will represent the organization’s charity
running team, a committed group of more than 1,700 adult runners
from around the world who add meaning to their miles by raising funds
for NYRR’s free youth running programs. The programs serve more than
200,000 kids locally and nationally, including
more than 120,000 in New York City’s five boroughs.
“As one of the
great American long-distance runners, Molly serves as a role model to
kids across New York City’s five boroughs, the country and the world.
New York Road Runners is honored to have her as a Team for Kids
Ambassador,” said Michael Capiraso, president and CEO of New York Road
Runners. “Molly is an inspirational role model for the next generation
of runners, and her commitment to youth will
have a profound impact on NYRR’s free youth running programs for years
to come.”
Huddle will also pace the first-ever Girls’ Run
at the NYRR New York Mini 10K on Saturday, June 11. As part of NYRR’s
youth running series, the event is a 2.25-mile race for girls ages 7-18
that takes place just before the professional
athletes NYRR New York Mini 10K, finishing
at the same finish line as the TCS New York City Marathon. Huddle won
the 2014 NYRR New York Mini 10K, becoming the event’s first American
champion in a decade.
At the 2016 TCS
New York City Marathon, the USA Division of the prize purse will total
$116,000, with the top male and female American finisher each taking
home $25,000. The second-place finisher in each category
will receive $15,000, followed by $10,000 for third place, $5,000 for
fourth place and $3,000 for fifth place. In order to contend for the USA
Division prize, athletes must have U.S. citizenship and not be eligible
to represent another country in international
competition.
The 2016 TCS New York City Marathon will be
televised live on Sunday, November 6, on WABC-TV, Channel 7 in the New
York tristate area from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET, and for the rest of
the nation on ESPN2 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET.
Notable Women’s Marathon Debuts in New York City
Year
Name
Finish
Click Here: Rugby league Jerseys
1978
Greite Waitz, NOR
2:32:30 (1st)
1991
Liz McColgan, GBR
2:27:32 (1st)
1994
Tegla Loroupe, KEN
2:27:37 (1st)
2001
Deena Kastor, USA
2:26:58 (7th/1st USA)
2002
Marla Runyan, USA
2:27:10 (4th/1st USA)
2005
Marie Davenport, IRL
2:33:59 (16th)
2008
Kara Goucher, USA
2:25:53 (3rd/1st USA)
2010
Shalane Flanagan, USA
2:28:40 (2nd/1st USA)
2010
Mary Keitany, KEN
2:29:01 (3rd)
2011
Molly Pritz, USA
2:31:52 (12th/1st USA)
2011
Lauren Fleshman, USA
2:37:22 (16th, 2nd USA)
2015
Laura Thweatt, USA
2:28:23 (7th, 1st USA)
About the TCS New York City Marathon
The TCS New York City Marathon is the premier
event of New York Road Runners (NYRR) and the largest marathon in the
world. Over 1,000,000 people have finished the race since its first
running in 1970 with just 127 entrants and 55 finishers
running four laps around Central Park. The race expanded to all five
boroughs in 1976 and is now in its 40th year as a five-borough affair.
Held annually on the first Sunday of November, the race features 50,000
runners including the world’s top professional
athletes and a vast range of competitive, recreational, and charity
runners. Participants from over 125 countries tour the city, starting on
Staten Island at the foot of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and running
through the neighborhoods of Brooklyn, Queens,
and the Bronx before ending in Manhattan. In 2015, the inaugural NYRR
Youth Invitational at the TCS New York City Marathon gave young runners
the opportunity to run 1.8 miles of the race course in Central Park,
beginning near mile 24 and finishing at the famed
TCS New York City Marathon finish line. More than one million
spectators and thousands of volunteers line the city streets in support
of the runners, while millions more watch the live television broadcast
in the New York area on WABC-TV, Channel 7, nationally
on ESPN2, and via various international broadcast partners around the
world. The race is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, which
features the world’s top marathonsÛÓTokyo, Boston, London, Berlin,
Chicago, and New YorkÛÓand crowns the top professional
male and female marathoners each year. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS),
a leading global IT services, consulting, and business solutions
organization, is the premier partner of NYRR and the title sponsor of
the TCS New York City Marathon. The 46th running
of the TCS New York City Marathon is set for November 6, 2016. To learn
more, visit
www.tcsnycmarathon.org.