Kelly Murzynsky Wins Cleveland Marathon

Peachtree City resident Kelly Murzynsky won the inaugural Greater Cleveland Marathon held in Cleveland, OH on May 6. Kelly ran a personal best time of 3:13:18 (averaging 7:22 per mile) to win by almost 16 minutes. This was her eighth marathon and first victory.

Kelly chose to run Cleveland because her husband Joe is from the area, and her mother-in-law still lives there. The Cleveland course started and finished at the Hard Rock Cafe, traversing many of the neighborhoods along the way.

"What a scenic course," said Kelly. "I loved running through those different Cleveland neighborhoods. It was very interesting."

Kelly didn't realize she was leading the women's race until the halfway point at Shaker Square. Shortly after that point, a convertible Porsche pace car joined her and proceeded to escort her.

Told if she could catch it, she could have it, Kelly chased the Porsche all the way to the finish. Kelly was surprised to hear her name called along the way, not realizing that announcements had been made to the spectators on the course.

"I had heard about how tough those hills on Fairhill and Murray Hill were, but considering the hills we run in the Kedron part of Peachtree City, the ones in this race weren't hard at all."

Kelly, 35, competes for the Atlanta Track Club women's competitive team and is a dental hygienist and personal trainer at World's Gym in Peachtree City.

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