A Sampling of Contagion Causing Race Cancellations & Postponements

The 2019 Frank Nealon Boston Tune-up 15K. For a 2020 ‘Boston Tune-up’ the race will need to switch to the fall. Photo by MickFoto/NERunner

 

All indications point to the Coronavirus pandemic getting worse before it gets better and it’s already pretty damn bad. The running landscape mirrors the nation in looking bleak at the moment; there’s a lot of fluidity as things shift dramatically on a daily basis.

 

Through March 8 a number of races were held in New England but commencing on March 10, two proclamations put a lid on things, and justly so (in our humble opinion). On March 10, Mass. Governor Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency.

 

Five days later the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended the cessation of sporting events for 8-weeks from March 15 until May 9. Professional sports headed to the sidelines; the B.A.A. Boston Marathon postponed until the fall, so did London.

 

Below is a small sampling of recent cancellations and postponements:

 

March

 

15th – New Bedford Half Marathon/USATF-NE GP – Cancelled

 

15th – NYC Half Marathon – Cancelled

 

15th – Tobacco Road Marathon (Cary, NC) – Cancelled (Ed. note:So why are we listing this? Because original Stowe 8M (VT) RD Jim Miller was supposed to run it and Jim was gracious enough to let me crash in his hotel room after a late decision to attend the Trials in Atlanta. Jim ran 18 miles the morning of the Trials. Better luck down the road Jim!)

 

22nd – Queens Marathon (Flushing Meadows Park, NY) – Postponed until Nov. 15 (Ed. note:RD Albert Galatan reported the race was sold out with 100 entrants added as soon as Tokyo banned the masses).

 

28th – Fast Friends 5K, Swanzey, NH – postponed to June 13

 

28th – Starting with the Healthy Kidney 10K on March 28, the NYRR cancelled all its events through May 10

 

April

 

5th – Doyle’s – Closed (Ed. note:Read all about the demise of the “Cornerstone of the NER Pub Series” in the latest issue of NER.)

 

5th – 48th Cherry Blossom 10M, Washington DC – Cancelled. (Ed. note:We were signed up for this but were able, among three options, to defer to 2021.)

 

5th – Cohasset Road Race by the Sea 10K – Cancelled

 

5th – Frank Nealon Boston Tune-up 15K/USATF-NE GP – Postponed indefinitely (according to USATF-NE).

 

18th – Newport Rhode Races (RI) – Marathon, Half Marathon, 5K – Cancelled with deferral to 2021 and Virtual options.

 

18th – Merrimack River Trail Race 10M – part of the USATF-NE All Terrain Series, postponed until Oct. 3

 

20th – B.A.A. Boston Marathon is postponed until Sept. 14. Dates for attendant BAA 5K and Invitational Miles TBD

*Boston’s postponement, along with London moving to early Oct. puts four World Marathon Majors—Boston, London, Chicago and NY—all within a month of each other.

 

April 25th – Ipswich Half Marathon, Ipswich, MA – Cancelled

 

April 26 – Sleepy Hollow Mtn. Race 6.4M, Huntington, VT – postponed to Nov. 15

 

May

 

9th – Narrow River Run 10K/5K, Narragansett, RI – Cancelled

 

9th – Seaglass Sprint 5K, Plymouth, MA – postponed to Sept. 27

 

June

 

17th – Louise Rossetti 5K, Beverly, MA, postponed TBD

19th – Beverly Relays – postponed TBD

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