Thousands of really serious runners are winding through New York's five boroughs today in the New York City Marathon.
The best story line, the biggest story line belongs to Edison Pena, the 34-year-old Chilean miner who ran every day during the 69 days he was trapped in a coal mine with 32 other miners.
"I would like to inspire young children to run," said Pena, who has already inspired everybody else and hopes to finish in 6 hours, said, "because running makes you free."
There are celebrities, like actress/model Veronica Webb, foodie Bobby Flay, Subway pitchman Jared. There are former stars in other sports, like Amani Toomer. In a gimmick-for-a-good-cause, he was the last to cross the starting line and, for every one of the 43,000 runners he passes, Timex will donate $1 to the youth programs of the New York Road Runners, sponsors of the marathon. He's hoping to raise around $20,000.
"They all think I'm crazy," Toomer, 36, said of his former football colleagues. "I want to finish the marathon in less than four hours," he told ESPN. "I'd also like to break Lynn Swann's mark of 4 hours, 26 minutes and become the fastest NFL player to ever run the New York City Marathon."
(source:washingtonpost.com)
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