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QUEENS WEEKLY, JAN. 20, 2019
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Queens Marathon set
for Flushing Meadows
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
At least 1,000 participants
from around the U.S.
and Canada are expected
to participate in the fourth
annual Queens Marathon,
set to take place in April at
Flushing Meadows Corona
Park, according to Queens
Distance Runners.
So far, close to 200 participants
have registered
for the 26.2 mile race,
which will follow a sixloop
course through the
borough’s biggest park
on Saturday, April 21 at 8
a.m., according to Kevin
Montalvo, director of the
Queens Marathon and
Queens Distance Runners,
a nonprofit athletic club.
“Our catchphrase is
‘The World is Waiting’
and it touches on the
Queens Unisphere, and
it’s a symbol of welcoming
the world, but at the same
time it’s going to showcase
the best of what Queens
offers and what the New
York City running community
is going to offer,”
said Montalvo.
The race is an official
qualifier for the 2020 Boston
Marathon, as per a designation
by USA Track and Field,
the national governing body
for cross-country running.
Additionally, the New York
Road Runners Club of America,
the oldest and largest
national association of running
organizations, has selected
the Queens Marathon
as the host of the New York
State Marathon Championships
this year.
“People from all across
the state are going to be
excited to race this one,”
said Montalvo.
The Queens Marathon
was developed in 2016
by the Queens Distance
Runners Club, which
has invited all running
clubs, Friends of Queens
Distance, and the general
public to take a patch of
the course and support
participants of the race.
The course is mostly
flat and fast with a few
small hills. It winds
Registration is now open for the Fourth Annual Queens
Marathon, set to take place on April 21 at Flushing Meadows
Corona Park. Courtesy of Queens Distance Runners
through soccer fields, playgrounds,
and New York
City’s largest lake with the
Unisphere, Citi Field, the
USTA Billie Jean King National
Tennis Center, and
Queens Museum almost
always in sight.
This will be the first
year the Queens Marathon
will provide a spotlight on
several official charities.
Participants will have
the opportunity to raise
funds for a local organization
on their behalf, according
to Montalvo.
Local charities supported
by the Queens Marathon
include: The Alliance for
Flushing Meadows Corona
Park; Achilles International
Queens; Queens Centers
for Progress; and Queens
Community House.
Montalvo said they will
need about 200 volunteers
to help provide food, water,
and encouragement.
“A lot of people assume
that to be involved you have
to run. But the volunteers
are much a part of the race
as the runners are because
they’re standing out in the
course for hours upon end
and that’s a good way to get
started in running,” said
Montalvo. “When you volunteer
you feel a connection
and realize that you
can do it too.”
Training for the Queens
Marathon is being offered
from elite coach Luciana
Medina, of Coach Medina
NYC, who has helped runners
achieve their goals
since 2014.
“Anyone that has a goal
in mind we facilitate the
communication and they
train them towards it,”
said Montalvo.
Montalvo said their
goal is to one day bring a
full Queens Marathon to
the streets in the borough,
from Long Island City to
Far Rockaway.
The 2019 Queens Marathon
is supported by the
Queens Tourism Council
and the entities within
Flushing Meadows Corona
Park.
Registration is now
open and is $120. Awards
will be given to the top
three male and female
runners overall. There
will also be a free, onemile
race for children at
9:30 a.m.
For more information
and to register, visit
queensmarathon.org .
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at cmohamed@
cnglocal.com or by
phone at (718) 260–4526.
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