UNC graduate and former college athlete, Shalane Flanagan, made history last weekend, being the first American woman to win the New York City Marathon in 40 years. Her victory inspired runners all over the world, especially the UNC Marathon Team.
Brittany Hughes, a junior and officer of auxiliary on the UNC Marathon Team, has looked up to Flanagan ever since she competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
“I remember watching her run the Olympic trials marathon, and I remember I really liked the way that she ran that race even though she had a tough race that day,” Hughes said. “I looked her up and found out she went to UNC, and she became my favorite runner.”
Hughes said that marathon running hurts — a lot.
“You start out not knowing if you’re going to be able to do it,” she said. “This was my second marathon, so I know I can do it, but something about 26 miles is intimidating. It hurts more as time goes on, so you have to be ready to push yourself.”
Hughes decided to run the NYC Marathon last April and has been training for it since last May. This weekend, as Hughes ran in the same race as Flanagan, she was inspired by Flanagan’s victory and was able to continue pushing herself as the race got more difficult.
“I was at a tough spot in my race, at about mile 10.5, when I got the notification on my phone that she had won,” Hughes said. “I started crying, and I felt that I was just running on clouds for like 2 miles. I’m pretty sure that was my fastest mile the whole race.”
Flanagan has also served as a role model for junior Danielle Curtis, a member of the Marathon Team who also ran in the NYC Marathon this weekend.
“I was still running when Shalane finished, but as soon as I finished, the first thing I did was ask who won,” Curtis said. “I got to run with her when she came to Chapel Hill on tour for her cookbook a few years ago. She went to UNC, and she is the first American woman to win in 40 years, so I was thrilled when I heard she won.”
