Rosie Ruiz, Boston Marathon course-cutter, dies at 66

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Rosie Ruiz, Boston Marathon course-cutter, dies at 66

Aug. 8, 2019, 10:46 PM EDT
By Associated Press

BOSTON — Rosie Ruiz, the Boston Marathon course-cutter who was stripped of her victory in the 1980 race and went on to become an enduring symbol of cheating in sports, has died. She was 66.

Ruiz, who was also known as Rosie Vivas, died in Florida of cancer on July 8, according to an obituary that made no mention of her Boston Marathon infamy. Running magazine first made the connection this week, a fitting end to one of the oddest chapters in the history of the race.

"It's a colorful part of the Boston Marathon history, that's for sure," said Bill Rodgers, who won the men's race that year and was immediately suspicious of the woman sitting next to him on the awards podium. "Poor Rosie, she took all the brunt of it."

An unknown who didn't look or act like she had just run 26.2 miles, Ruiz finished first in the women's division in Boston in 1980 in a then-record time of 2 hours, 31 minutes, 56 seconds. Even as she was awarded her medal and the traditional olive wreath, her competitors wondered how a woman they hadn't ever heard of — or seen on the course — could have won.

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Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/rosie-ruiz-boston-marathon-course-cutter-dies-66-n1040651


Rosie Ruiz after crossing the finish line as the apparent women's winner of the 84th Boston Marathon on April 21, 1980. Ruiz was later stripped of her race title after it was determined that she hadn't run the entire race. (David Madison / Getty Images file)

[CentralMass]

1. She even had her own ballad.