Local school teacher upsets pros at Cherry Blossom 10-miler in Washington, D.C.
On her seventh try, the elementary school teacher from the D.C. area won the race
Washington D.C.’s famous Cherry Blossom 10-mile run tends to attract a field of elite women from East Africa and some of the top professional distance runners in the U.S. On April 3 a local school teacher, Susanna Sullivan, who was an unlikely favourite, finished first in the 10-miler (16.09km) in 52:32. This marked the first time a local resident has won the race in 40 years.
Susanna Sullivan is your winner, unofficially in 52:32. She heads an American sweep with two local runners, as Carrie Verdon closes for second and Charlottesville’s Paige Stoner completes the podium pic.twitter.com/UZtFitRNEr
— Noah Frank (@NoahAFrank) April 3, 2022
The race conditions were near perfect for Sullivan and the field, as the weather hovered around 10 C with no wind. The 31-year-old fifth-grade teacher from Reston, Va., who is currently unsponsored, relied on her vast knowledge of the course to lead her to victory. Sullivan runs a portion of the course every weekend at D.C.’s East Potomac Park and Hains Point and knows every twist and turn.
Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run Results:
1 Susanna Sullivan 52:32
2 Carrie Verdon 52:37
3 Paige Stoner 52:38
4 Sarah Pagano 52:46
5 Kim Conley 53:40
6 Molly Bookmyer 53:55
7 Katja Goldring 54:11
8 Tayler Tuttle 54:20
9 Elaina Tabb 54:23
10 Elena Hayday 54:32https://t.co/8I6zoHFZta— Fast Women (@fast_women) April 3, 2022
Sullivan became the second runner from Washington to win the prestigious race since Eleanor Simonsick in 1983. This also marks the second straight year that an American woman has won the race against a tough international field. (Nell Rojas won last year’s edition.)
This year marked Sullivan’s seventh year entering the race, and she had never finished higher than eighth. “Breaking the tape meant a lot for me,” Sullivan said to local news. Sullivan will be the talk of the classroom when she returns to her job at Haycock Elementary School this week.
Susanna Sullivan wins the elite womens race in 52:32! pic.twitter.com/yan05f0kOJ
— CUCB Ten Mile Run (@CUCB) April 3, 2022
The Cherry Blossom 10-miler wasn’t only a successful field trip for Sullivan; Carrie Verdon, who’s also a grade-school teacher in Colorado, placed second. Paige Stoner of Reebok Track Club in Charlottesville, Va., was the first pro runner to cross the line in third.
Almost 15,000 runners finished in the first normal spring slot for the race since 2019.