13 Women Who Changed Running History

March 7, 2024

Running history is woven in a colorful tapestry of achievements conquered by both men and women, but considering women were only allowed to register for marathons as recently as 1972, female history holds barrier-breaking triumphs and moments of gender-gap-busting bravery.

In 1873, Harvard Medical School professor Edward Clarke published Sex in Education: A Fair Chance For The Girls, a piece of literature that claimed women should not study for more than four hours a day and physical activity led to ovarian atrophy. He manipulated science to spread a false narrative that women shouldn’t be athletes—or even equals. This kind of thinking created years of roadblocks for female athletes. Womens Running