Arlene Pieper (18 March 1930 – 11 February 2021)[1] became the first woman to officially finish a marathon in the United States at 29 years old and a mother of 3 children[2] when she finished the Pikes Peak Marathon in Manitou Springs, Colorado, in 1959 which includes an 8,000 foor climb to the 14,115 foot summit and a descent back down the same way.[3][4][5] (Although known as Arlene Pieper at the time, she was born Arlene Val Richter[1] and most recently before her death known as Arlene Pieper Stine.[6]) Her daughter Kathie, 9, also ran in 1959 and became the youngest competitor as of 1959 to finish the half marathon race to the summit, but did not finish the whole marathon.[7] Arlene also entered the Pikes Peak Marathon in 1958 but stopped at the summit, therefore being disqualified.[4] After this disqualification, Arlene redoubled her training over the next year and prepared to run the full marathon.[1]1959, women had the choice of a race to the summit or the full marathon up to the summit and down.[4] That year Katherine Heard was first to the summit with a time of 5:17:52 but did not run down the mountain.[4] Arlene reached the summit four minutes later, and finished the marathon with a time of 9 hours and 16 minutes which makes her pace per mile about 21 minutes and 13 seconds per mile.[4][8] Unlike other more publicized marathons such as the Boston Marathon that didn't allow women to compete until 1970, the Pikes Peak marathon did not have such restrictions.[9]
She did the marathon to promote the all-female gym[10] she and her husband owned in Colorado Springs, called Arlene's Health Studio.[11] She trained for a year, wearing tennis shoes she bought from a dime store.[11] In addition to her shoes, Pieper also wore a white blouse tied in a knot and short shorts which is quite different from what marathoners wear today.[10]After spending four years in Colorado, she and her husband returned to California, where she had lived as a teenager and where they had run gyms for exercise guru Harold Zinkin.[12] They were also acquainted with exercise guru Jack LaLanne and Arnold Schwarzenegger.[12]
Arlene was unaware of the groundbreaking nature of her marathon until she was contacted by the President of the Pikes Peak Marathon, Ron Llegan,[1] in 2009.[12]Llegan began his search for Pieper in the early 2000s but found it difficult to find her due to her relocations over time as well as her 3 marriages. Llegan eventually ran an ad in a local newspaper offering a money reward to which Genealogist, Linda Vixie, took on the challenge and was able to find Ms. Pieper and was able to first tell her by phone that Pieper was the first woman to complete an authorized marathon. When Pieper was asked about her reaction when she found out about her accomplishment in an interview with WBUR, she stated “It just -- just blew me away-I said, 'I'm the first?"[1]. She served as the official starter for the Pikes Peak Marathon that year, and hung the Pikes Peak Marathon medal around the neck of the 2009 women's winner, who credited her win to Arlene's inspiration.[12][11] Afterward Arlene attended the Pikes Peak Marathon every year until at least 2013 as part of the ceremonies.[13]
Arlene died on February 11, 2021, at age 90.[6]
Marriages
editArlene was married to Wallen Pieper, Eddie Garza, and Richard Stine, with all of those marriages ending in divorce.[1]
Honors
editArlene was named as one of the 2014 Heroes of Running by Runner's World.[14]
In 2016, Arlene was inducted into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame.[15]
In 2019, a group of women honored Arlene a week before the Pikes Peak Marathon by running up Pikes Peak while wearing white shorts, white hats and white shirts, which was the same outfit Arlene wore when she ran the marathon in 1959.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g Sandomir, Richard (April 25, 2021). "Arlene Pieper Stine, 90, Dies; First Woman to Finish a Marathon" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "Preview unavailable - ProQuest". www.proquest.com. Retrieved 2024-11-16.
- ^ "Women Run Pikes Peak to Celebrate 60th Anniversary of First Female Marathon Finisher". Runner's World. 2019-08-24. Retrieved 2024-11-16.
- ^ a b c d e "First woman to run marathon in US - PPM". Pikespeakmarathon.org. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ "Arlene Pieper – 1st Lady Marathoner". Marathonandbeyond.com. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Pikes Peak Marathon legend Arlene Pieper Stine, the first woman to run a sanctioned marathon, has died". The Colorado Sun. March 29, 2021.
- ^ "Home". Arlenepieper.com. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ "Running Pace Calculator". Strava. Retrieved 2024-11-17.
- ^ Vinny, Benedetto (August 26, 2019). "Arlene pieper celebrates 60th anniversary of milestone marathon at pikes peak, plans to return for as long as possible".
- ^ a b "Arlene Pieper: The Marathon Pioneer Almost Forgotten By History". www.wbur.org. 2017-04-21. Retrieved 2024-11-17.
- ^ a b c "The Trailblazer: Arlene Pieper". Runner's World & Running Times. 10 December 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ a b c d "Meyer: Pieper carved out tracks for women". Denverpost.com. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ "Fresno woman holds 1st female marathoner title". ABC30 Fresno. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ "2014 Heroes of Running". Runner's World & Running Times. Archived from the original on 10 October 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ Hancock, Amanda. "Arlene Pieper Stine, first woman to run a marathon and Colorado Springs hero, has died". Colorado Springs Gazette.