Gayle Barron

Gayle Barron (born 6 April 1945) is a former American marathon runner. From 1970 to 1978, Barron placed in the top five in marathons held across the United States and was the winner of the 1978 Boston Marathon. Barron was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2003 and the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

Gayle Barron
Personal information
Born (1945-04-06) April 6, 1945
Atlanta, Georgia
OccupationAthlete
Sport
CountryUnited States
SportMarathon
Retired1981

Early life and education

On 6 April 1945,[1] Barron was born in Atlanta, Georgia. She went to Druid Hills High School before attending the University of Georgia.[2] Barron graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism.[3]

Career

In the 1960s, Barron began running while at the University of Georgia. She entered her first large race in the 1970 Peachtree Road Race.[4] As a co-founder of the Peachtree Road Race,[5] Barron was the top female finisher at Peachtree each year from 1970 to 1975 except for 1972 when she was beaten by Gillian Valk.[6] Barron also won the first three Peach Bowl Marathons held from 1972 to 1975.[7]

In 1974, Barron became a professional runner.[8] As a professional athlete, Barron placed in the top three at the Boston, New York and Honolulu marathons from 1975 to 1977. Barron's final win was at the 1978 Boston Marathon[9] and she continued to run until 1981. After ending her professional running career, Barron began working for an athletic clinic.[10] Outside of marathon running, Barron was a television broadcaster for WAGA-TV in Atlanta and coached a team of runners from the Leukemia Society of America.[3]

Awards and honors

In 2003, Barron was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.[9] In 2007, Barron became a part of the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame.[11]

References
  1. "Runner: Gayle Barron". Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  2. Burfoot, Ambe (2016). First Ladies of Running: 22 Inspiring Profiles of the Rebels, Rule Breakers, and Visionaries Who Changed the Sport Forever. Rodale. pp. 179–80. ISBN 978-1609615642.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  3. Dalton, Bob (1 January 1999). "Gayle Barron, the First Lady of Peachtree, to speak on Team Spirit". Fayette Citizen. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  4. Burfoot 2016, p. 180.
  5. Burns, Rebecca; Warhop, Bill (May 2006). "History Makers". Atlanta Magazine. p. 108. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  6. Benyo, Richard; Henderson, Joe (2002). "Peachtree 10K". Running Encyclopedia. Human Kinetics. p. 264. ISBN 0736037349.
  7. "Atlanta Marathon". Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  8. "Barron Wins First Race". Albuquerque Journal. 18 April 1978. p. C1.
  9. "Gayle Barron" (PDF). Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  10. Davis, Mike (22 May 1981). "Running Can Be Beautiful". Indianapolis News. p. 29.
  11. "2007 Induction Ceremony". The Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame.
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