Jane Welzel
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Jane Welzel (born April 24, 1955, d. Aug. 31, 2014) was a pioneering long-distance runner who advocated for women to be added to the sport. In 1990, she became the U.S. Marathon Champion when she ran 2:33:35 at
Grandma's Marathon Grandma's Marathon (sport), Marathon (Grandma's) is an annual Road running, road race held each June in Duluth, Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, in the United States. The course runs point-to-point from the city of Two Harbors, Minnesota, Two Harbor ...
in
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. Her career spanned decades. She competed in five U.S. Olympic Trials Marathons and won more than 50 major races. She was selected to represent America at the 1988 and 1989 World Road Racing Championships as well as several World Championship races: the 1992 Half Marathon, the 1993 Marathon, the 1993 Marathon Cup, and the 1994 Half Marathon.


Early career

Welzel grew up in
Hopkinton, Massachusetts Hopkinton is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, west of Boston. The town is best known as the starting point of the Boston Marathon, held annually on Patriots' Day each April, and as the he ...
, the city that hosts the start of the
Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...
. She graduated from Hopkinton High School in 1973. She attended
University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the Public university, public university system of the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes six campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, University of Massachusetts Lowell ...
and competed on the swim team, joining the water polo team as well. However, a problem with the pool facilities canceled practices during one season, and Welzel tried training with the nascent college cross country team. She won her first race and decided to stick with the sport, where she competed with many other pioneering female runners such as Joan Benoit. She would spend three years in cross country, and two years on the track and field team. Her cross country team finished in the top 10 at the AIAW National Championship in 1975. In the middle of her college career, the age of 20, she trained for Boston, plodding 30–40 miles a week, never going past 10 miles for a run. On the day of the 1975 marathon, she entered the starting crowd, not realizing there was a qualification requirement. She ran as a bandit and finished around 3:35, somewhere in the top-30 women. She would advance in the marathon distance, and in 1979, she won the Nittany Valley Marathon in
State College, Pennsylvania State College is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough and Home rule municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule municipality in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a college town, home to the University Park, Pennsylvania, University Park ...
. She ran a 2:41:07 in Louisiana in 1980. Four times she tried to break the 2:40 barrier. Then in 1983, at age 28, she took the lead from the start and won the Philadelphia Marathon by eight minutes in 2:36:38, a personal best time. She was present at the first U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon, and ran with the fastest women in the nation to finish 14th in 2:35:53.


Accident

Jane Welzel and her husband were driving from
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,
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, to
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,
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, while on vacation in 1984. On the way, their vehicle swerved on a gravel road and flipped into a cow pasture. The top of the car was crushed, and Welzel was trapped in the wreckage. He neck was broken. She survived, but spend several weeks strapped to a specialized bed that limited movement before being put into a full-body plaster cast for two months. For nearly three years, she persisted in regaining movement, then fitness, then competitive form. By the 1988 Olympic Trials Marathon, she had fully recovered and was a contender to win the race. She had qualified with a 2:42 time at the
Twin Cities Marathon The Twin Cities Marathon is a marathon in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area which normally takes place the first weekend in October. The race is often called "The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America" due to a course that winds through down ...
. She showed that she was back to form by finishing 13th in the trials in 2:36:08, prompting
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to call her the "Comeback Runner of the Year."


Return to running

Welzel ran the 1990 Boston Marathon, finishing in 11th. In 1991, she was 10th. She was the first American woman in 1992 and 10th overall. She was the 1990 U.S. Champion in the marathon when she won the
Grandma's Marathon Grandma's Marathon (sport), Marathon (Grandma's) is an annual Road running, road race held each June in Duluth, Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, in the United States. The course runs point-to-point from the city of Two Harbors, Minnesota, Two Harbor ...
(named for the sponsor, Grandma's Restaurant) in a personal best time of 2:33:25. The day was muggy and warm, and participants described struggling in the high heat index. Welzel went out faster than local favorite Janice Ettle, then caught Minnesotan Janis Klecker at the halfway mark. Welzel credited her training in Colorado with the ability to hold the lead to the finish. She raced to 6th place against international competition in the 1990 Berlin Marathon, in which she outran East Germans such as Birgit Jerschabek. She was sponsored by
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at the time. Welzel's father Hank, who had escaped Berlin in the late 1940s, returned to the city for the first time to see his daughter's race. In 1992, she finished 10th at the
Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...
just after running to 9th place at the 1992 Olympic Trials Marathon in 2:35:55 during the hot and humid weather Houston provided. She returned to
Grandma's Marathon Grandma's Marathon (sport), Marathon (Grandma's) is an annual Road running, road race held each June in Duluth, Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, in the United States. The course runs point-to-point from the city of Two Harbors, Minnesota, Two Harbor ...
on the North Shore in June. Dueling with Gail Hall and Elena Semenova of Ukraine, she passed each and won in 2:33:01. It was the second-fastest time ever recorded for a woman on the course from
Two Harbors, Minnesota Two Harbors is a city in and the county seat of Lake County, Minnesota, United States, along the shore of Lake Superior. The population was 3,633 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Minnesota State Highway 61 serves as a main route i ...
to
Duluth Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...
. She ran the World Half Marathon Championships in England, placing 43rd in 1:13:30. In the 1993 World Championships in
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,
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, Welzel lined up in the morning heat and humidity, bracing for a hot race that went to the middle of the day. As her U.S. teammate Kimberly Rosenquist-Jones led athletes in the first laps inside the German " Neckarstadium," Welzel tucked into the pack. Paces were slow as predicted, and Junko Asari won. Jones finished 8th and Welzel finished 19th. Welzel trained for the U.S. National Championship 25K, which brought her to
Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...
's Old Kent River Bank Run. The race featured many of the fastest in the U.S., and Alfredo Vigueras (who had just gained citizenship), was eyeing the men's championship. After the gun, Jerry Lawson led the crowd as crushing winds slowed the pace. For 10 miles, Welzel ran with Lorraine Hochella. Then Welzel drafted off a few men to gain ground, which she kept. Vigueras caught Lawson to win for the men, and it was Welzel for the women in 1:29:47—a national record for master's women runners. She qualified for and ran the 1996 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in
Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-mo ...
. During the Feb. 10 race, Jenny Spangler won and Welzel finished 88th in 2:53:40. In September of the same year, she won the City of Lakes 25K. At the 2000 Trials, Welzel was one of four women to compete for the fifth time. The others were Julie Peterson, Beverly Docherty and Janice Ettle. Welzel finished 126th in 3:04:44 while
Christine Clark Christine "Chris" Clark (born October 10, 1962, in Butte, Montana) is a retired female long-distance runner from the United States, who competed for her native country at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. There she ended up in 19th p ...
took the win. She found more success in Master's categories (runners over 40 years old), winning dozens of 10Ks (such as the '97 Indy Grand Masters Prix and Sacramento's Avon Running 10K in '99). She set two U.S. records for women over 40 years old, one in the 5K and one in the 25K. She finished 15th at the Fifth Third River Bank Run in both 2002 and 2003, and was top 30 in a return to
Grandma's Marathon Grandma's Marathon (sport), Marathon (Grandma's) is an annual Road running, road race held each June in Duluth, Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, in the United States. The course runs point-to-point from the city of Two Harbors, Minnesota, Two Harbor ...
in 2003 at the age of 48, still clocking a sub-three-hour marathon. Later in life, she became the race director of competitions in the
Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality in Larimer County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The population was 169,810 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, an i ...
, area.


Personal life

Jane Welzel grew up around marathon culture in the town of Hopkinton,
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
, with her four siblings. Her father Hank grew up in Germany, then refused to fight for the Nazis, escaped to America, lived in a POW camp in Alabama, was sent back to East Germany, then escaped again (with U.S. help) to Hopkinton. Jane Welzel married Steve Liggett. They met at
University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the Public university, public university system of the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes six campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, University of Massachusetts Lowell ...
. Welzel was a professional counselor, specializing in eating disorders, couples counseling, personal growth, and sports psychology. Jane served at a coach in Massachusetts and
Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...
. After studying at, competing for, and coaching in the
University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the Public university, public university system of the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes six campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, University of Massachusetts Lowell ...
, Welzel was inducted to their Hall of Fame. She spent the majority of her running career living in Colorado (moving there in 1989) and was included on the Colorado Running Hall of Fame in 2013. Two years later, she was inducted into the
USATF Masters Hall of Fame The USATF Masters Hall of Fame is the Masters section of the National Track and Field Hall of Fame. It is intended to select worthy athletes from the various divisions of Masters athletics involved in the sports of track and field, road running an ...
. She died at 59 after a short battle with pancreatic cancer. In 1995, she was quoted as saying "For me, running is like a metaphor for life. You put yourself on the line, see what you can do. There are things in running you usually don't have a chance to face otherwise. It gives you strength in other areas."


Achievements


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Welzel, Jane 1955 births 2014 deaths American female middle-distance runners American female long-distance runners University of Massachusetts alumni Track and field athletes from Massachusetts Sportspeople from Massachusetts Sportspeople from Hopkinton, Massachusetts Pennsylvania State University 20th-century American sportswomen