NYRR Turns 50 in 2008

On June 4, 1958, a group of 40-odd runners met at Macombs Dam Park in the Bronx and founded New York Road Runners. At the start of its 50th anniversary year, NYRR is one of the world's premier running organizations, with more than 45,000 members, a year-round calendar of races including the famed ING New York City Marathon, fitness offerings for all members of the community and a running program serving 30,000 children in New York City and around the world.

NYRR will once again stage more than 60 events in 2008.

BY THE NUMBERS
A Look Back at the 2007 NYRR Season
Number of events: 62
Total number of entrants: 309,003
Male entrants: 166,575
Female entrants: 142,428
Total number of finishers: 230,702
Male finishers: 126,943
Female finishers: 103,759

Three largest races:
1) ING New York City Marathon (38,607 finishers) – largest marathon all-time
2) NYC Half-Marathon Presented by NIKE (9,927 finishers)
3) AHA Start! Wall Street Run (6,672 finishers)

Month with most racers:
November with 59,907 finishers, clearly because of the ING New York City Marathon. If that race is removed, April wins the award with 23,530 finishers.

On Top of the World
It's one of the purest tests of athletic ability – just a small group of athletes and 1,576 steps to the top of New York City's most famous building. More than 250 runners will bypass the elevators and climb to the top in the 31st NYRR Empire State Building Run-Up on Tuesday, February 5. In this invitational race, runners race up 86 floors and 1,050 feet from the lobby to the iconic 86th floor observation deck.

America's Best Return to Central Park
The top U.S. distance runners "from the mile to the marathon" will once again line up in Central Park as New York Road Runners hosts the USA Men's 8K Championships on Saturday, March 15. Since NYRR first hosted the event in 2002, the race has become one of the most popular stops on the American circuit. It's fast, too, as the Central Park environs have spurred athletes on to nine of the 20 fastest men's times in U.S. history. New York City resident Anthony Famiglietti surged to victory in 2007. Who will be the national champion in this Olympic year? More information to come soon on course, prize money, other event updates and an announcement of a special addition to the race.

For updates on its 50th anniversary celebrations and also check out "This Week in NYRR History", the most interesting, inspiring and just plain unusual facts about the first 50 years of the world's premier running organization, visit: NYRR.org

Source/Courtesy: Running USA – RunningUSA.org

Ryan Lamppa,
Running USA Media Director
(805) 696-6232
Ryan@RunningUSA.org |

www.RunningUSA.org