Grete Waitz

Grete Waitz
Waitz in New York City in 2010
Personal information
Born(1953-10-01)1 October 1953
Oslo, Norway
Died19 April 2011(2011-04-19) (aged 57)
Oslo, Norway
Height5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Weight120 lb (54 kg)
Sport
CountryNorway
SportSport of athletics
EventMarathon
Medal record
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1984 Los Angeles Marathon
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1983 Helsinki Marathon
World Cross Country Championships
Gold medal – first place 1978 Glasgow women's race
Gold medal – first place 1979 Limerick women's race
Gold medal – first place 1980 Paris women's race
Gold medal – first place 1981 Madrid women's race
Gold medal – first place 1983 Gateshead women's race
Bronze medal – third place 1982 Rome women's race
Bronze medal – third place 1984 East Rutherford women's race
European Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1974 Rome 1500 m
Bronze medal – third place 1978 Prague 3000 m
IAAF World Cup
Gold medal – first place 1977 Düsseldorf 3000 m
Silver medal – second place 1979 Montreal 3000 m
Marathons
Gold medal – first place 1978 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1979 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1980 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1982 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1983 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1983 London Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1984 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1985 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1986 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1986 London Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1988 New York City Marathon
Gold medal – first place 1988 Stockholm Marathon

Grete Waitz (née Andersen, 1 October 1953 – 19 April 2011) was a Norwegian marathon runner and former world record holder. In 1979, at the New York City Marathon, she became the first woman in history to run the marathon in under two and a half hours. Waitz won nine New York City Marathons, women's division, between 1978 and 1988, the highest number of victories in a single big city marathon in history. She won the silver medal at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and a gold medal at the 1983 World Championships in Helsinki. She was also a five-time winner of the World Cross Country Championships.[1][2][3]

Waitz four times set a world record in the marathon, twice at the 3000 metres, and she set world records at distances of 8 kilometers, 10 kilometers, 15 kilometers and 10 miles. She won 12 World Marathon Majors, the most for any runner, earning her a place in the Guinness World Records.[4] Her other marathon victories included winning the London Marathon in 1983 and 1986 and the Stockholm Marathon in 1988.

  1. ^ "Grete Waitz – A Life in the Lead". nyrr.org. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  2. ^ Turnbull, Simon (22 April 2023). "How marathon greats Waitz and Kristiansen made a name for themselves". World Athletics. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  3. ^ Robbins, Liz; Weber, Bruce (19 April 2011). "Grete Waitz, Marathon Champion, Dies at 57". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Guinness World Records 2015 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).