The Daring Dozen Who Shaped 50 Years of the New York City Marathon
For the 50th running, a tribute to some of the inspiring movers, shakers, risk-takers and ground-breakers who gave us the race we know and love.
Author
Roger Robinson
Roger Robinson’s When Running Made History has won international acclaim as one of the best books about running ever. An elite runner who set Boston and New York masters records, he has also been Olympic television commentator, stadium announcer, coach, journalist, author, and historian. “My goal always is to find the best words to describe running, because running is so important in so many lives,” he says. He wrote Running in Literature, Heroes and Sparrows, 26.2 Marathon Stories, and literary-scholarly works. He is Emeritus Professor at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, which awards annual Roger Robinson Scholarships.
My Stories
What You Know About How Running Became a Pro Sport Is Only Half the Truth
The alternative story of how, 40 years ago, running escaped from its amateur restrictions and became a modern, professional sport.
Sifan Hassan Joins a Select Group of Historic Multi-Medalists
With medals in the 10,000m, 5,000m and 1500m at the same Olympics, Hassan steps onto a special podium with a select few who secured memorable distance triples and doubles.
A Training Truth from the First Olympic Marathoner
The first Olympic marathon was won by a runner with no coach, no training schedule, no gym, no special diet—only a lifetime of logging 16 miles a day delivering water.
Olympic Heroes Who Never Stood on the Podium
A celebration of runners who didn't win but inspired us and won our admiration by living the Olympic ideal: “to have fought well.”
5 Most Memorable Miles in Running History
The mile race is the perfect drama — to race, to watch, to relive — as these trackside accounts of unforgettable showdowns throughout running history reveal.
How to Run to the Top, and Stay … and Stay … and Stay There
Secrets of long-term excellence as a runner, from Nick Willis, Deena Kastor, and others who might qualify for an Elite Longevity Hall of Fame.
Seven Principles for Setting Goals During Your Running Comeback
A former elite competitor who keeps reviving his running — even at 81 with two artificial knees — provides guidelines for goals when returning from setbacks.
An Eye-Witness History of the New York City Marathon
One personal view of 50 years of the race that did so much to create modern running — as a runner, broadcaster, fan, writer, and human.
Lessons from London 2020
What we learned about racing, racers, and the indomitable spirit of running from the London Marathon in the time of Covid-19.
Murder in Half-Marathon: Peter Lovesey’s “The Finisher”
Author Peter Lovesey dreams of being a great runner. His passion for running makes him a major crime novelist, and an important historian of the sport.
The Olympic Marathoner Who Went Missing
The story of a runner who went missing during the 1912 Olympic marathon and recorded the world's slowest time by several decades. He’s now celebrated as Japan’s ‘father of the marathon.’