1978 Chicago Marathon

Last updated

2nd Chicago Marathon
Venue Chicago, United States
DatesSeptember 24
Competitors4053
Champions
Men Mark Stanforth (2:19:20)
Women Lynae Larson (2:59:25)
  1977
1979  

The 1978 Chicago Marathon (also known as the Mayor Daley Marathon) [1] was the second running of the annual marathon race in Chicago, United States and was held on September 24. The elite men's and women's races were won by Americans Mark Stanforth (2:19:20) and Lynae Larson (2:59:25). The race was run in temperatures at times above 80 °F (27 °C), which caused hundreds of competitors to need medical attention.

Contents

Background

The entry for the 1978 race was increased from $5 the previous year to $10, making it the most expensive US marathon race to enter at the time. [2] The money covered the race organizer's cost of between $200,000 and $250,000 for the race. He had lost $65,000 from the 1977 event. [3] The winners received no prize money, which was not introduced until 1982. [4]

The start time for the race was 10:30 am, which was 2.5 hours later than the previous year; [4] originally, the proposed start time had been noon, but this was changed after consultation with competitors and the Chicago Area Runners Association. [5] :181 Reasons given for the change included so that more out-of-town competitors could attend, [6] and so to attract more spectators. [4] Many competitors objected to this change, citing issues with the potential for high temperatures, [4] and the medical doctor from the 1977 event also criticized the decision to change the start time. [3] Some competitors wore black armbands to protest the decision. [4]

Race summary

The race was run in a peak temperature of over 80 °F (27 °C), and as a result, hundreds of competitors needed medical attention, [4] and 10 people were hospitalized. Chicago mayor Michael Anthony Bilandic blamed the lack of fitness of competitors for the health issues. [7] It was estimated that between 9,000 [6] and 10,000 [8] people started the race; the youngest starter was eight years old, and the oldest starters were around 70 years old. [6] Anyone was able to sign up for the event, unlike in the Boston Marathon where competitors had to have previously achieved a qualifying time. [8] The race had two start lines, which allowed competitors to spread out more easily. [5] :181 A total of 4053 runners finished the race, a near doubling from the previous year. [9]

In the men's race, 1977 winner Dan Cloeter led from the start of the race, ahead of a pack of leading racers. [10] Mark Stanforth caught that group, as they were struggling with the heat more than him, and then caught and passed Cloeter at around the 20 miles (32 km) mark. [4] [11] Cloeter fell behind from Stanforth as he was suffering from cramp in his legs. [11] Stanforth suffered with blisters on his feet in the last few miles, [11] but nevertheless won the race in a time of 2:19:20. [10] He finished over five minutes ahead of Barney Klecker, who finished second, and Cloeter finished third, five seconds behind Klecker. [10] After the race, Stanforth said that the course was too slow, as it had too many corners and too many changes of terrain. [6]

The women's race was won by Lynae Larson, a schoolteacher in Brookings, South Dakota, [4] in a time of 2:59:25. [12] After the race, Larson complained that the delayed start time affected her travel home, as she had to drive six hours back to Brookings to work the next day. [6]

Results

Men

Top 10 Men's finishers
PositionAthleteNationalityTime
Gold medal icon.svg Mark Stanforth Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:19:20
Silver medal icon.svg Barney Klecker Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:24:13
Bronze medal icon.svg Dan Cloeter Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:24:33
4 Blair Bertaccini Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:26:31
5 Dean Reinke Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:26:55
6 Pat Chmiel Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:27:22
7 Les Myers Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:29:39
8 Robert Brown Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:30:08
9 Thomas Blumer Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:30:08
10 John Been Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:30:33

Source: [5] :159

Women

Top 10 Women's finishers
PositionAthleteNationalityTime
Gold medal icon.svg Lynae Larson Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2:59:25
Silver medal icon.svg Karen Doppes Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:13:20
Bronze medal icon.svg Debbie Hartsock Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:13:25
4 Marion Burchfield Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:20:00
5 Martha McCafferty Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:22:45
6 Susan Grossman Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:25:00
7 Mary Logan Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:26:00
8 Samatha Danner Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:28:35
9 Lydi Pallares Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:29:35
10 Sonja Liems Flag of the United States.svg  United States 3:29:55

Source: [5] :159

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard M. Daley</span> Mayor of Chicago from 1989 to 2011

Richard Michael Daley is an American politician who served as the 54th mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1989 to 2011. Daley was elected mayor in 1989 and was reelected five times until declining to run for a seventh term. At 22 years, his was the longest tenure in Chicago mayoral history, surpassing the 21-year mayoralty of his father, Richard J. Daley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago Marathon</span> Annual footrace held in Chicago, U.S.

The Chicago Marathon is a marathon race held every October in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the six World Marathon Majors. Thus, it is also a World Athletics Label Road Race. The Chicago Marathon is the fourth-largest race by number of finishers worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paris Marathon</span> Annual race in France held since 1976

The Paris Marathon is an annual marathon hosted by the city of Paris, France. It is the largest running event in France in terms of finishers and the marathon with the second-most finishers in the world, behind the New York City Marathon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shalane Flanagan</span> American long-distance runner

Shalane Grace Flanagan is an American long-distance runner, Olympic medalist and New York City Marathon champion. She was the first American woman to win the New York City Marathon since 1977. She holds the NACAC area records in both the 10k and 15k road races.

The women's marathon was one of the road events at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics in Rome, Italy. It took place on 29 August 1987; the course started and finished at the Stadio Olimpico and passed several of Rome's historic landmarks. The race was won by Portugal's Rosa Mota in 2:25:17, a new championship record, ahead of Zoya Ivanova of the Soviet Union in second and France's Jocelyne Villeton in third.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Sockalexis</span> American distance runner

Andrew Sockalexis was an American track and field athlete who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics.

The 2013 Boston Marathon was the 117th running of the annual marathon race in Boston, United States, which took place on April 15, 2013. Organized by the Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.), it hosted the second of the World Marathon Majors to be held in 2013 with over 23,000 runners participating. Lelisa Desisa won the men's race with a time of 2:10:22, and Rita Jeptoo won the women's with a time of 2:26:25. Hiroyuki Yamamoto won the men's wheelchair race in 1:25:32 and Tatyana McFadden won the women's in 1:45:25.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1983 Chicago mayoral election</span> Municipal election

The Chicago mayoral election of 1983 was first the primary on February 22, 1983, which was followed by the general on April 12, 1983. The election saw the election of Chicago's first African-American mayor, Harold Washington. Incumbent Mayor Jane Byrne, who had served since April 16, 1979 had lost renomination in the Democratic primary in a three-way race between herself, then–Congressman Washington, and then–Cook County State’s Attorney Richard M. Daley in February 1983. Washington would face off against Republican nominee Bernard Epton, winning with a 3.7% lead over Epton in the general election.

Ravil Iskhakovich Kashapov, мсмк is a Russian ultramarathon and former marathon runner. He represented the Soviet Union at the 1987 World Championships and 1988 Summer Olympics.

Joseildo Rocha da Silva is a Brazilian long-distance runner. He won the 1991 Chicago Marathon, the marathon event at the 1991 South American Championships in Athletics, and the 1993 Los Angeles Marathon. Da Silva competed in the men's marathon at the 1992 Summer Olympics.

The 2019 Chicago Marathon was the 42nd annual running of the Chicago Marathon held in Chicago, Illinois, United States on October 13, 2019. The men's race was won by Kenyan Lawrence Cherono in 2:05:45 while the women's was won by Kenyan Brigid Kosgei in 2:14:04, a world record by 81 seconds. The men's and women's wheelchair races were won by Daniel Romanchuk and Manuela Schär in 1:30:26 and 1:41:08, respectively. More than 45,000 runners completed the race.

Lynae Larson is an American former marathon runner, who won the 1978 Chicago Marathon, and finished second in the 1979 Chicago Marathon. She failed to qualify for the 1976 Summer Olympics.

The 1991 Chicago Marathon was the 14th running of the annual marathon race in Chicago, United States and was held on October 27. The elite men's race was won by Brazil's Joseildo da Silva in a time of 2:14:33 hours and the women's race was won by Sweden's Midde Hamrin in 2:36:21.

The 2004 London Marathon was the 24th running of the annual marathon race in London, United Kingdom, which took place on Sunday 18 April. The race was the coldest London Marathon in history, and the wettest race in history until it was surpassed in 2020.

Dan Cloeter is a retired athlete and current pastor in Osceola, Nebraska. While attending Concordia University Nebraska, Cloeter was forty-eighth at the 1972 Amateur Athletic Union Cross Country Championships and seventh at the 1973 NAIA Men's Cross Country Championship. Between 1973 and 1981, Cloeter competed in American marathons including multiple appearances at the Chicago Marathon. Cloeter won the 1977 event, then known as the Mayor Daley Marathon, and was third in 1978. He won again in 1979, the year the marathon's name was changed to the America's Marathon-Chicago.

David Kimani Mungai is a Kenyan mid- and long-distance runner.

Sally Brent is an American long-distance running athlete who broke barriers for female runners in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Brent was the winner of the inaugural Twin Cities Marathon in 1982, running the race in 2:43:50. Only a few other American women had breached the 2:45:00 mark in 1982, and just seven years earlier, it had been the woman's world record.

Debbie Mueller is an American middle and long-distance runner who won many major road races in the 1980s and 1990s, including the Dublin Marathon.

Mark Stanforth is an American former marathon runner and coach, who won the 1978 Chicago Marathon. He failed to qualify for the 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 New York City Marathon</span> 51st running of the marathon

The 2022 New York City Marathon, the 51st running of that city's premier long-distance race, was held on November 6, 2022. The race followed its traditional route, which passes through all five boroughs of New York City. 47,839 people finished the event. It was the warmest New York City Marathon on record, with peak temperatures of 75 °F (24 °C).

References

  1. "The Mayor Daley Marathon". WMAQ-TV . October 2, 2012. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  2. "Two views on how to hold a marathon". Chicago Tribune . June 28, 1978. p. 73. Retrieved July 12, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 "Compromise best in the long run". Chicago Tribune . September 27, 1978. p. 79. Retrieved July 12, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "The second marathon: Sept. 24, 1978". Chicago Tribune . September 20, 2002. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Chicago Marathon Year-By-Year" (PDF). Chicago Marathon . Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Kiley, Mike (September 25, 1978). "Arizona bank employe wins Daley Marathon". Chicago Tribune. sec. 5, p. 1. Retrieved July 12, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Dangerous heat, snow, world records, controversy and the year it was canceled: 40 Chicago Marathon moments". Chicago Tribune . October 6, 2017. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  8. 1 2 "Missed the Marathon". The Cincinnati Enquirer . October 3, 1978. p. 79. Retrieved July 12, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  9. Chicago Marathon. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  10. 1 2 3 "Stanforth captures Daley marathon". Wisconsin State Journal . September 25, 1978. p. 20. Retrieved July 12, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  11. 1 2 3 "Mayor Daley run has state look". Rapid City Journal . September 25, 1978. p. 12. Retrieved July 12, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Chicago Marathon at a Glance". Runners World. September 23, 2009. Retrieved February 2, 2020.