I had a chance to meet Grete at the 2007 Boston Marathon, when she graciously signed a poster saying "Good luck at the 100-Mile Championships!". That poster has since been in direct sight to my treadmill, so that any time I'm pussing out, I can think about what it took to come out and clock a 2:32 first marathon in world record time in an era when women were still thought to not be able to do the distance. That poster now has even deeper meaning, since I'm sure Grete would like nothing more today than to be training and feeling that pain.
Do an extra 800 for Grete Weitz this week and feel that pain... Thank you for your inspiration! You can also donate to Grete's charity that helps the quality of life of cancer patients here.
I think I'll throw down more than one 800 for Grete. I heard of this news two days ago, and was deeply saddened. When I was a kid, I remember watching her in Boston and especially NYC, always pushing the limits of women's marathon running. She will be missed. She was certainly a poineer and superstar.
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This is very sad news. She has definately been an inspiration to me.
ReplyDeleteScott - I am an avid reader of your blog; this testimonial, among others, is lovely. I would ask though: is it really necessary to describe Grete as one of the greatest women runners of all time? Would you have qualified the greatness of a male athlete by his gender?
ReplyDeleteGrete is one of the all-time greats and it was a pleasure to watch her race in New York. She was a person who inspired a generation of people to get out and get active.
ReplyDeleteAnon - You know, I originally wrote this as "one of the greatest runners of all time" but didn't think it showed her contribution to women in running. Perhaps I could have done it a better way, but that was the intent.
ReplyDeleteI would ask though: is it really necessary to describe Grete as one of the greatest women runners of all time?
ReplyDeleteHomesure, I think the answer to your question is a pretty clear YES, it is necessary to describe her as such. You may prefer to describe her differently, but part of her contribution to history is as a *woman* running. While there may be many great women runners today, she did so when women running was not at all common. There is nothing wrong with acknowledging her contribution to history and in fact this is part of what makes her noteworthy.
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