It was not an easy decision to cancel the 2012 ING New York City Marathon. Whether or not the marathon was run on Sunday, there would have been people that were upset.  The reason why people would have been heartbroken is the major motivational factor in this decision - people are crying because they’ve lost everything they’ve ever owned or because they are unable to compete in the marathon.

The former factor obviously takes precedence over the latter. While some athletes may be crying, they’ll be able to wipe away their tears as they enter their warm homes. Others are not as fortunate.

However, the marginalization of these upset marathoners is unacceptable. The anger should not be directed towards the Mayor Bloomberg, NYRR CEO Mary Wittenberg, or the anthropomorphic Hurricane Sandy. Some New Yorkers should be disappointed in themselves.



During the official press conference, Wittenberg continually mentioned that there was a negative perception towards the runners and volunteers. We thought that was hyperbole to simply strengthen the decision to abandon the marathon.

But when we talked to volunteers, the story became legitimized. Each volunteer is provided with an ING sponsored bright orange jacket and Asics shoes. Volunteers should be able to be recognized as it’s their job to help people.

But the volunteers were recognized for the wrong reason. They were no longer beacons of aid, but easily spotted targets of abuse. When one volunteer finished her duties left the Central Park, she was confronted by two strangers.

“How can you [expletive deleted] look at yourself in the mirror,” said one of the men. “I hope you’re happy at what’s going on in the city,” said another.

What had this young volunteer done to bring so much hatred and malice upon herself? The penalty for wanting to give up her free time to help others was rewarded with spit in the face and a kick to the shin.

This is just one example of how the NYC mob canceled the marathon. While their anger was justified, the projection of their hate was misguided.

One volunteer said that one NYC citizen yelled insults at them from their apartment window. “Why don’t you actually go help those in need,” he screamed.

It’s “slacktivism” in its finest form. Insult the people on the street and then return to the comfortable confines of your apartment where you’re doing nothing more than feeding the fire.

The flame was fanned so large in part to the affects of social media. The “Cancel the 2012 NYC Marathon” had over 50,000 likes before the announcement. One of the top trending topics on Friday and Saturday was “nyc marathon.”

Social media provides an incredible forum for individuals to voice their opinion. Hashtags, topics, and buzzwords provides a home-base for users to curate their tweets and posts. When you search for “nyc marathon,” the general consensus was overwhelming; it should be canceled.



While the environment in NYC was not conducive to holding the marathon, there were extreme opinions. One tweet read, “I hope the generators in central park explode and kill some of the runners.” There has been so much death and destruction; why incur more for these bystanders.

This “popular” opinion ultimately caused the cancelation of the marathon. In the press conference, Wittenberg reiterated that the marathon is event to bring unity to that city and that this year’s event would not accomplish that goal. There was far too much animosity towards the marathon for it to do a 180 degree turn and bring happiness to the masses.

Bloomberg and Wittenberg both must abide by utilitarian beliefs - the greatest happiness is derived from the most people being happy.

However, does social media skew the number of angered New Yorkers? Perhaps, but it only takes a few crazed individuals to run out onto the course, hurt athletes, and forever taint the image of the NYC Marathon.

Last year in NYC, social media fueled the Occupy Wall Street Movement. It may even decide the Presidential Election next week. The internet managed to cancel the NYC Marathon.

It was supposed to be “The Race to Recover.” This was supposed to be Bloomberg and Wittenberg’s magnum opus. The city was destroyed and this marathon would help bring it back on its feet. Events like that have happened before in New York.

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani will be forever remembered as the 9/11 Mayor of NYC. He was the smile, personality, and spirit of the city when it needed a leader.

Shortly after 9/11, baseball returned to NY when the Mets played the Atlanta Braves. President George W. Bush threw out the first pitch. People were cheering because of baseball.

The Mets trailed late in the game, but then something magical happened. The leader of the Mets, catcher Mike Piazza, came to the plate and belted the game winning home run that caused fans to rise to their feet while hope rose in their hearts. It’s remembered as one of the most memorable moments in baseball.



This is what the marathon could have been. New Yorkers could have lined the streets and their cheers would have motivated the athletes to push onwards and lifted the soul of the city.

It was simply not the right time for this to happen. There would be no post-disaster miracle.

The anger projected towards the athletes is uncalled for. It’s not their fault that they chose to run NY months prior and are now stuck between a rock and a hard place.

There are those who have trained for months, paid thousands of dollars in travel, and are now stranded. There is no destination in their marathon journey. This event was supposed to the culmination of their hard-work and now they will wake up Sunday morning and check their travel plans.

It’s unfair to one personal friend, who was going to run the marathon with his entire family. His younger sister had fought Leukemia and they had raised an incredible amount of money towards cancer research.

“When will we ever get a chance to do this again,” he told me. “What if something happens in the future?"

It’s unfair to athletes who drew hope from the marathon. Wittenberg said during the press conference that one woman who had overcome breast cancer was jubilant that the marathon was still being held because the event had given her hope.

It’s unfair to athletes, such as the teary-eyed Julie Culley, to read direct messages about why she’s at the expo and not volunteering her time. It’s not her fault that resources were not correctly allocated in this time of need.

In the end, no one is going to be happy. Come Sunday afternoon, how much better off will NYC be without the marathon? The city claims that no resources were diverted from the relief effort, but how true is this statement? The police, energy generators, funds, and volunteers will be redeployed to areas where they are truly needed. It’s about using these resources for necessities (living conditions) and not luxuries (the marathon).

Everyone on the East Coast and specifically New York City should be scared and upset. There are already so many without power, food, running water, or a roof over their heads.

As someone who is caught between two worlds (running geek and NY native), I feel that the anger is justified but irrationally voiced. The parallels between the marathoners and those hurt are the same as the difference between the parts of the city with and without power.


Letsrun.com taking a picture of Letsrun.com taking a picture of the generator with a picture of the generator. It's like an M.C. Escher drawing.

There are those that have and those that do not have. There existed an uneasy disparity in New York and people became enraged. Some are still without power during these cold November nights while others are waiting for the marathoners to leave so they can live in their hotel rooms until further notice.

But why was no one yelling obscenities as we talked down the overly crowded Sixth Avenue this afternoon? Why was no one stopping tourists in Times Square to ask them to take the ferry to Staten Island and help with the cleanup?

Refocus your anger towards to the goal of helping New York. Take an example from the Facebook group “Cancel the 2012 NYC Marathon.” Soon after the announcement, the group changed its name to “LetsGetNYCBackonHerFeet” and are now refocusing their efforts towards the relief.

It pains me to see New York in this current state. In the end, the race was not in the city’s best interest. It wasn’t a unifying event, but rather one that caused more pain throughout the city.

Even though it’s impossible, I just hope that at some point in the future, everyone will be calm, happy, and safe.