Black American Women Marathoners from Marilyn Bevans to Aliphine Tuliamuk

Black American women marathoners have been a force at the elite level for nearly half a century. Their accomplishments, however, are not well-known, even among devoted fans of the sport.

Gary Corbitt, the founder of the Ted Corbitt Archives and the historian of the National Black Marathoners Association, is taking steps to change that. Working with race directors, statisticians, and these pioneering marathoners themselves, he’s documenting and highlighting the accomplishments of past and current Black American women marathoners competing at the top level.

Corbitt realized there was a research and knowledge gap when he had an exchange several years ago with Shawanna White, one of the U.S.'s top Black marathon runners.

“Two simple questions posed by Shawanna White were unknown: Has an African American ever qualified for the USA marathon trials? and Is there a ranking list for the best times among African American women for the marathon?” said Corbitt, the son of the legendary Ted Corbitt, NYRR’s founding president. “This is what inspired me to do this research.”

Few in number—only four of the 500+ women who qualified to run the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials were Black—these women are pioneers, paving the way for future generations.

Corbitt shares his ongoing research on the Ted Corbitt Archives, which also documents the extraordinary life and legacy of Ted Corbitt along with a century of Black American distance running history.

Shining a Light on History

Elevating Black American women marathoners’ history and achievements is of vital importance, according to Corbitt. “This is basic record keeping that’s done in all sports,” he said. “I’d also like for all my work to serve as an inspiration for runners to achieve their goals and to document the rich history of Black long-distance runners.”

His research shows that 18 Black American-born women have broken three hours in the marathon (he is continuing to research naturalized American citizens). Shawanna White has the most sub-3:00 performances, with 16. Corbitt has verified the accuracy of his findings with the Association of Road Racing Statisticians (ARRS). “I’d verify results and check them with ARRS and race site results pages,” he said.

A Collaborative Effort

The past year has seen an increase in the number of women making the list. “I’d like to see the number of elite Black distance runners—both female and male—grow,” said Corbitt. “I think growing the pipeline by identifying college runners with potential is step 1. Then build funding sources that provides an environment to grow the number of professional Black distance runners.”

Here are some highlights of this rich history. For more, visit the Ted Corbitt Archives and the National Black Marathoners Association’s Black American Long Distance History Timeline Project.

Marilyn Bevans

When Marilyn Bevans won the Washington Birthday Marathon in Maryland in 1975 in 3:04:42, she became the first Black American woman to win a marathon. A few months later she placed fourth in the 1975 Boston Marathon in a time of 2:55:52, becoming the first sub-three-hour Black American woman marathoner.

Bevans ran a total of 13 sub-3:00 marathons, with a lifetime personal best of 2:49:56 from Boston in 1979. Track & Field News ranked her as the 10th fastest woman marathoner in the world in 1977. Bevans went on to become a coach for over 30 years. Now in her 70s, she remains active and passionate about distance running. 

Michele Bush Cuke

New York-based Michele Bush Cuke was a force in NYRR races in the 1980s and 90s, running for Warren Street Social & Athletic Club and Westchester Track Club and winning NYRR Runner of the Year honors. She was 14th at the 1985 New York City Marathon in a time of 2:42:03, and set her lifetime best of 2:37:41 at the California International Marathon in 1991.

Samia Akbar

Samia Akbar of Virginia finished 12th in 2:34:14 at the 2006 New York City Marathon, which at the time ranked her as the fastest Black American woman marathoner in history; she is thought to still be the fastest Black American-born woman marathoner. Akbar placed 11th in the 2006 NYRR New York Mini 10K and eighth in the 2007 NYC Half.

Akbar wasn’t aware of her distinction until Gary Corbitt told her about it in 2018. In a conversation on the blog Fast-Women.org, she said, “To this day, why is 2:34 the PR for a Black woman born in the U.S.? I feel like the time should be faster and we should have progressed by now.”

Shawanna White

Shawanna White, who has a marathon best of 2:45:19, learned about Marilyn Bevans when she read the book First Ladies of Running by Amby Burfoot. “I’d never heard of her, and I was so amazed,” she said. “When I’d go to races, the Black runners were all Kenyans and Ethiopians. I’d hardly ever see other Black Americans, but after reading about Bevans I thought, are there more? Maybe I just don’t know about them.” She wrote to Burfoot and eventually got in touch with Corbitt.

“When Gary came back with his list, I was shocked and honored to be on it, but I wanted there to be more women,” she said.  

White started running in middle school when a coach spotted her talent for long distances. “My family was surprised,” she said. “Most kids that are Black are thrown into the sprints. I’m so glad I was encouraged to try different things.”

The running community can do a lot to encourage Black people—kids and adults—to pursue distance running. White credits groups like Black Men Run and Black Girls Run for raising awareness and visibility. “They’re showing adults and kids that Black people do run longer distances,” she said. “More kids are realizing that could be them, too.”

She also encourages media outlets to step up, along with anyone who uses social media. “When kids see my name and picture in the newspaper, that can inspire them. If you have Black runners in your community who are excelling, give them a platform, cover them in the media, follow them and encourage them,” said White, who has 10.8K Instagram followers as @peachrunner26.2. 

Aliphine Tuliamuk and Sally Kipyego

Born in Kenya, Aliphine Tuliamuk became an American citizen in 2016. In 2020 she won the U.S. Olympic Trials marathon, becoming the first-ever Black American marathon champion. She has been deeply involved in NYRR's youth programs and initiatives, including Rising New York Road Runners Active at Home.

Sally Kipyego, also originally from Kenya, is an Olympic and World Championships medalist and placed second in the 2016 TCS New York City Marathon. She became an American citizen in 2017 and placed third at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon trials. Tuliamuk and Kipyego, both of whom came to the U.S. to attend college (Tuliamuk at Iowa State and Wichita State, Kipyego at Texas Tech), will represent the U.S. at the Olympics in Japan this summer.

The Black American women marathoners of today are hopeful but realize the sport—and society as a whole—still needs to progress. “I realize we still have a long way to go in terms of accepting everyone,” said Tuliamuk in an interview with The Lily.

The achievements of these and other Black American women marathoners are an inspiration and are paving the way for runners of the future.