Despite battling a vanilla milkshake craving, headwinds, and "The Wall" around mile 20, the eighth-ranked tennis player in the world Caroline Wozniacki "kept grinding" through Central Park to finish the Kipsang, Keitany Prevail in the Gale in 3:26:33.
"I’ve never tried anything this hard," Last month in Singapore at the. "This is the toughest physical test ever. Once I got onto First Avenue, I had the camera crew in front of me and I thought, Now I can’t walk. Keep running. Make it look easy.
&Caroline Wozniacki has impressive debut. Desi Linden Leads the Way
Wozniacki, who decided to run the race on a whim in June, was only able to notch runs no longer than 13 miles since she trained during her tennis season. To guide her through her first road race ever, she partnered with two pacers.
"When I said I wanted to run a marathon, I wanted to do it under four hours," the Denmark native said. "But when I started training, I was like, Oh I got this, so I wanted to run between 3:30 and 3:35. I'm really proud of myself."
Last month in Singapore at the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Finals, Wozniacki tapped into the endurance she gained during marathon training to win an unusually long match against Maria Sharapova. She may have fallen to Serena Williams in the next round, but on Sunday, the tables turned. Williams greeted her rival at the finish.
"I think she said, 'I'm proud of you. Unbelievable. Well done. Great job,' but honestly I can't remember since I was just so exhausted and excited," Wozniacki said. "She hugged me."
Wozniacki admitted that, although she wasn't nervous until she arrived at the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, she likely "did everything you're not supposed to do" before the marathon.
"I had a Halloween party three days ago, and I got back home at four in the morning," she said. "And last night, I didn't have much of a dinner because we went to the Rangers game. But this morning I had two bagels, and it worked."
Im so happy to have done this, and now I can say I ran the New York City Marathon." New York Road Runners' Runners Photos from the 2014 New York City Marathon Team for Kids. At the time of the interview, she said her efforts have raised about $81,500 for the organization.
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"Running obviously helped me, so I'm going to keep it up," she said. "Today was the fastest I could've run, and I'm very proud of my 3:26. I’m so happy to have done this, and now I can say I ran the Kipsang, Keitany Prevail in the Gale."
FULL COVERAGE OF THE NYC MARATHON
Main Story: Kipsang, Keitany Prevail in the Gale
Men's Recap: Kipsang Surges Over Last Mile to Win
Women's Recap: What You Need to Know About the Sydney Marathon
U.S. Men: Richard Blais, Tiki Barber, Teri Hatcher, and more
U.S. Women: Kipsang, Keitany Prevail in the Gale
Tennis star: Caroline Wozniacki has impressive debut
Other Notables: Richard Blais, Tiki Barber, Teri Hatcher, and more
On Social: Awesome Tweets About the Marathon
Slideshow: Great World Race: Results
Slideshow: Kipsang, Keitany Prevail in the Gale Post-Race Emotions
Slideshow: Runners Share Beers, Triumphs After Kipsang, Keitany Prevail in the Gale
Slideshow: Runners' Photos from the 2014 Kipsang, Keitany Prevail in the Gale
Notebook: The 2025 Marathon and Half Marathon Calendar
Postrace:Nutrition - Weight Loss
Postrace: Running in the Cold
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Families:For Top Runners’ Spouses, a Nervous Waiting Game
Perspective: How Urban Marathons Helped Save Cities
Strategy:Why Pros Care About Place, Not Time at NYC
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