The TCS New York City Marathon returned Sunday with some 50,000 runners racing to the finish at West Drive and 67th Street in Central Park all the way from Staten Island.
Thousands more lined the five boroughs in an effort to cheer on the athletes pushing down the 26.2-mile stretch.
When runners began to cross the finish line just before noon, an array of emotions exuded from the exhausted competitors. Glistening with sweat, some unleashed guttural roars while others simply wept with joy. The human body, taking tremendous punishment over the course of the race, began to shut down for some participants.
One man could be seen regurgitating while another blacked out, forcing several medics to literally carry him from the finish line. Despite the hardships, the sense of accomplishment left all ecstatic.
“It was really good, it was tough. The last stretch is much longer than I thought,” David Ho told amNewYork Metro clutching his medal. Ho has made it his goal to run in numerous major marathons, and the New York City Marathon was his eighth race.
For Ho, the experience, albeit difficult, is indescribable. He explained that the sheer adrenaline when running amongst thousands of others, as well as seeing even more thousands in the crowd, was an exhilarating process.
“It’s amazing…I’m quite sore but feeling great that I’ve done it,” Ho said.
While Ho is a veteran racer, it was the first time Victor and Alex who visited the Big Apple and found it the perfect way to view the historic city.
“It has been a dream for me. I wanted to do it before my 40th birthday. I’m 40, so not bad. I’ve never been to New York and it’s the best way to discover this amazing city by running a marathon,” Victor said.
“Everybody should do, just train and eat a lot,” Alex joked.
“New York is very special, the US is very special. It’s a great marathon. Thank you, New York,” Victor added.
The 2022 TCS New York Marathon marked Greg Latanik’s second time running the iconic race and was proud of his finish and shared how he was feeling.
“I feel great. I paced myself well, I had a lot of energy at the end. You have to start conservative, you have to because you know what, you have to respect New York City. This is the toughest of them all,” Latanik said.
Latanik shared that the experience of traversing through the five boroughs by way of the marathon is an incredible feeling and he made his way from Canada just to do it.
“Oh, you know, the atmosphere, the city, you have to do it. I am from Canada, and I traveled just to run it,” Latanik said.
