Up to 500 Irish runners and many Irish charities will miss out because the New York marathon was canceled.
It is an especially tough blow for many of the Irish charities as they depend on the New York City marathon for signficiant funding as runners commit to raise large sums for them. One estimate is that close to $1 million in funding is lost for various charities.
Among the charities affectd are Crumlin Children’s Hospital, GOAL and Irish Autism Action. Keith Duffy of Boyzone was down to run for Autism while former world indoor mile record holder Senator Eamon Coughlan of the Chidren’s Hospital was also in town for the event.
On Friday Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the Marathon’s cancellation.
The statement read “The marathon has always brought our city together and inspired us with stories of courage and determination.
“We would not want a cloud to hang over the race or its participants, so we have decided to cancel it.”
Bloomberg however reiterated his confidence that the race would not draw services away from those in need and insisted, throughout the week, that the international event would take place.
However the opinion of those New Yorkers affected by the storm was made evident as the week went on.
On Friday the New York Post’s front page was a photo of two large generators being used for one of the Central Park marquees being set up with the headline “Abuse of Power”.
On the news a Staten Island resident who was crying for help, in the form of food and water, told CNN “We're freezing our asses off with no power, no nothing….I'm sorry, [Mayor Michael Bloomberg] is delusional."
In Brooklyn a sign was posted outside a home which read “F.U. Mayor and Your Marathon”.
Anne Lieberman a resident of Fort Greene said told ESPN “I understand the marathon being held for financial reasons, but I think they finally realized just how f---ed up it is to host a race when people don't have basic necessities to live.
"I mean, this stuff out here looks post-Katrina-like."
Mike Francesa, a native New Yorker and WFAN radio host, said “Now you want the street to be littered with half-full water bottles from guys who are running in the marathon, who are pouring it on their heads and throwing half-used bottles in the street and in [New] Jersey they don't have water?!"
The Village Voice newspaper said “New York City doesn't have resources to waste right now, especially on a stupid race.”
On Saturday Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that temporary fuel trucks would be deployed to areas in New York City and Long Island for emergency vehicles and the public. He also announced that 80 percent of the New York subway system had been restored.
However the situation is not improving for all residents. Those the worst affected areas may be without power for another week and many have lost their homes entirely.
Priscilla Santos, in Coney Island, told NBC 4 New York the situation there was dire.
She said “What I'm dealing with is a whole week, basically, of losing income... no heat, no water, no toilets, no food, no nothing.”
Happily as the thousands of runners arrive to New York, having hoped to run the Marathon, these able-bodied and kind spirited athletes are turning their hands to volunteering to help those in need.
One of the runners Meg Stlnick, from Wichita said “We have so many skill sets among us all and we're going to go out there.
“We have thermal gear. We're going to put out backs into it just as we would 25 miles. We're going to help these New Yorkers in any way we can.”
Another runner, Tyler Kaltenbach from Portland said “I feel like the right decision was finally made, but I think it was made two or three days too late... now that I'm here, I want to make an effort to volunteer and do something to help.”
Here’s NBC’s coverage of the race cancellation:
View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.
10 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.boydshield | Nov 06, 2012, 07:58 PM EST
Bloomy is arrogant. Obama rushed in to NJ for a quick photo op. The East coast has sustained MAJOR damage. Deal.
BippyBellito | Nov 04, 2012, 04:05 PM EST
The arrogance of Mayor Bloomberg and his endorsed buddy, Obama (Global Warming? Are you serious)has underscored the incompetence of government in crisis. For all of the social programs Obama and Bloomberg are foisting on the people of New York, and the attendant expense, the reality is that they have let the infrastructure of a major city deteriorate to the point of incompetence. Both of these Ass Clowns need not only to go, but charges should be brought against both.
borefield | Nov 04, 2012, 02:27 PM EST
Cillowen, what did Mitt Romney have to do with the NY Marathon?. Bloomberg is so arrogant and in his mind so superior to everyone else, he had to be forced kicking and screaming to cancel the race. Which he should have done days earlier. He is far from being Nobel or concerned. New Yorkers are not weak people, they are tough, resilient and kind. They knew this was not the weekend to run a marathon amid the chaos , pain and devastation for so many. This race can and will be rescheduled. NY/NJ WILL Recover! They always do.
Pittsburghkid | Nov 04, 2012, 01:17 PM EST
First of all, New Yorker would have rioted. It would not have been pretty.
cillowen | Nov 04, 2012, 12:20 PM EST
cults of a feather stick together. Romney's prophet being Joe Smith Junior .
Murph46 | Nov 04, 2012, 11:18 AM EST
Nice expression of my thoughts (and many more,possibly the majority)bimjimmy!
mreinhar2001 | Nov 04, 2012, 11:12 AM EST
Rebelfirce, AengusOg, and bimjimmy all echoed my thoughts very eloquently. The only thing I want to add is that, rather than being disappointed, the marathoner from Switzerland in the NBC video ought to try running all over the battered city and area bringing help and messages where needed. Running for the lives of others could be her competition. Also, charity does not have to be in the form of money. If the marathoners want to consider giving to charity, they can put their skills to use and help the residents in their need.
Rebelforce | Nov 04, 2012, 10:54 AM EST
The marathoners who were going to spend the day running 26 miles around NYC should put that energy to better use by volunteering to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy.
AengusOg | Nov 04, 2012, 10:47 AM EST
Heavy the head that wears the crown. Pity poor Mayor Bloomberg, after making a bevy of difficult executive decisions re: soda pop, French fries etc, along comes Sandy. Not one to waver in the face of such a dire situation, His Honor took to the airways, supported by his gaggle. this was the storm of the century and no precaution would be sufficient to escape extensive damage. Was there any contingency the Mayor overlooked. Well, perhaps he failed to address the NYC Marathon. Already suffering vertebral exhaustion, Mayor Bloomberg could not bring himself to postpone or cancel this event before Sandy struck. So like all good little politicians, he tried to jaw-bone (of an ass?) and lie his way through a situation created by Mother Nature and his own indecisiveness. The Marathon must go on since it will not drain any recovery resources. All those trucks, many out-of-state, and the crews working on the damaged trees in Central Park put a lie to his Marathon statements.
bimjimmy | Nov 04, 2012, 10:29 AM EST
Yeah, good luck with that. A super-storm passes through and the socialites still want to have their little walkie-talkie fund-raiser? Look, stay home, there's been a disaster, send your money to the charity anyway. And go take some classes to learn about the real world outside your collective elevated special bubbles. I know you're going to sue somebody anyway, so go ahead and make the lawyers even richer while you lose your cases to what is known as "an act of God" - you can't win, but what the hey, it's only money. Sorry you're not more important that God, but I'm sure you can correct that by having all references to God removed from the laws of the country. Maybe you can have it changed to "an act of Obama", and you can sue him instead. What the heck is America coming to when people can't even understand the property and lives destruction of a huge storm? Has there been a mass infection across the country of the S.T.U.P.I.D. virus?