Katherine Switzer

Katherine Switzer was the first woman to complete the Boston Marathon with an official number in 1967. She entered the race as K. V. Switzer. As she was running the race Jock Semple, the race organizer, tried to prevent her from continuing. Reportedly he yelled: "Get the hell out of my race and give me those numbers." Switzer's boyfriend and several other men shielded her so she could keep running. Switzer finished with an approximate time of 4:20. It took five more years before women were officially allowed to compete in the Boston Marathon. Switzer later became the first female winner of the NYC marathon in 1974 with a time of 3:02:229. She continued running and advocating for women's sports for many years. In 2007 on the 40th anniversary of the her Boston Marathon run, she wrote an autobiography entitled "Marathon Woman:Running the Race to Revolutionize Women's Sports."