Runners Warm Up the Dance Floor at 40th Annual Club Night
Cold temperatures never seem to deter New York City runners. That was certainly the case on Thursday, January 31, as hundreds of NYC-area runners braved the elements to travel to the 40th annual NYRR Club Night.
Sneakers were traded in for dancing shoes. Suits and dresses were on display rather than singlets. And for many runners, the cold winter chill was put to the side as they warmed up the dance floor after all the awards ceremony.
Michael Capiraso, president and CEO of New York Road Runners opened proceedings by thanking the “backbone” of the organization: the clubs.
“You inspire so many people, such as the kids that run with NYRR,” he said. “You also inspire our staff. And you inspire each other. You are the backbone of the organization and I want to thank you all.”
“We’ve hit so many milestones recently,” said Jim Heim, SVP, event development and production, and race director, TCS New York City Marathon. “Tonight, we celebrate 40 years of NYRR Club Night. Last year was the organization’s 60th anniversary. Next year is the 50th running of the marathon and this year also marks 20 years of free youth running. So many of these achievements are because of you—the runners.”
As usual, the awards ceremony recognized this year’s individual and team award winners, which can also be seen below.
The special award winners were as follows: NYRR Youth Programs Awards Lyna Rochdi and Adama Samake; Achilles Athlete of the Year Alison Lynch and Mauricio Blandino; NYRR Strider of the Year Juan “Moose” Gonzalez; Joe Kleinerman recipient Janelle Hartman; and Team Spirit Award winner Queens Distance Runners.
The awards for Fred Lebow Runner of the Year went to Tadesse Yae Dabi and Roberta Groner, respectively.
At the event, a category was renamed as NYRR unveiled the Ted Corbitt Ultrarunner of the Year award on what would have been Corbitt’s 100th birthday. Gary Corbitt, Ted’s son, handed out the awards to Emeline Lagache and Alex Lorton.
The next available race on the calendar is the NYRR Al Gordon Brooklyn 4M.
