There is not a single statue of a real woman in Central Park. Good grief.
I did not know that until Thursday when Jami Floyd did a segment on WNYC-FM about this ludicrous injustice. Juliet of Verona. Mother Goose. Forty-four statues of men, but none of women who actually walked this earth. . My first response was, of course, Grete Waitz. She flitted through the streets of New York like a super-powered sprite from Norway, nine times ending up in Central Park as the winner of the New York Marathon. And still no statue? One could argue that her athletic achievement was the greatest by a female athlete within the borders of the big city. She owned the town, nine Sundays in November. She set an example of talent, grace and will, and New Yorkers claim her, despite the statue of her in Oslo. Waitz passed way too young in 2011, at the age of 57. She remains the embodiment of the sport. Men and women think about her when they put one foot after another. I know there is a statue of Fred Lebow, the big macher who built the New York Marathon, on the east side of Central Park. I jogged a few miles alongside them, through Brooklyn, in 1992, the day Waitz escorted Lebow, who was dying of brain cancer, on his last run around the city. But this is no time for Tracy-and-Hepburn sentiment. Waitz deserves her own statue, right near the finish line on the west side of the park. Obviously, there are hundreds of deserving women to right this wrong. My mom is out there, telling me, “Eleanor Roosevelt! Dorothy Day! Marian Anderson!" People were calling WNYC, nominating Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Marie Curie, Jackie Kennedy, dozens of worthy people. Nobody ever ruled Central Park the way Grete Waitz did. In a New York minute, get her a statue.
Brian Savin
7/16/2015 01:35:22 pm
Corrected spelling. Apologies to the fish
Jeff from Jersey; yes New Jersey
7/16/2015 04:20:54 pm
A good choice. As the late Jim Mckay noted, you either run the whole marathon or not at all. . . and boy did she ever.
bruce
7/17/2015 06:02:23 am
George,
George Vecsey
7/17/2015 06:40:29 am
You got that right. We saw a modern version of the six-century-old play Everyman last night, via National Theatre Live (an amazing addition to our world). It ends with the angel of death (an Irishman!!) going, Eeny-meeny-miny-mo, with malice. We all know examples of that. GV
Thor A. Larsen
7/19/2015 03:34:21 am
What a wonderful idea, George! Yes, Grete was certainly a modest woman will incredible hard-earned skills and tenacity who had so much to do in establishing the NY Marathon to becoming a leading international sporting event with Central Park as the focus. As a Norwegian and New Yorker (now Upstate), I would certainly try to do my little bit to push for such deserving honor for Grete. (I do have several sources to explore in this direction, and I will be in touch to discuss) Thank you! Thor
george hirsch
7/22/2015 02:48:14 am
Excellent idea George! Not only to recognize a woman and an amazing athlete and human being but one who performed on her biggest stage right in Central Park!
George Vecsey
7/23/2015 02:08:47 am
Note: George Hirsch is one of the great figures in the marathon, a runner and builder. I bet he and the NYRR can get a statue for Grete in the park. GV 7/23/2015 10:09:48 am
George
George Vecsey
7/24/2015 02:09:01 am
Alan, the worst part of the 2015 WWC was the contempt of the Canadian hosts and the FIFA criminals in putting the matches on artificial turf. They would never do that to male athletes at a WC. It was more money for them, never mind the damage to the female athletes' bodies.
bruce
7/24/2015 02:22:05 am
george, Comments are closed.
|
Categories
All
|