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Shalane Flanagan to have knee surgery

The 2017 NYC marathon champion, who finished third in 2018 despite pain from tears to her patellar tendons, revealed she almost dropped out before the race

Shalane Flanagan

2017 TCS New York City Marathon champion Shalane Flanagan, who finished third at the same event last year and confessed she almost did not run due to knee pain, posted yesterday that she will need surgery to repair tears in her patellar tendons. Flanagan has not raced since the 2018 NYC marathon.

RELATED: Shalane Flanagan nearly pulled out of the New York Marathon

Flanagan, who grew up in Massachusetts, sat in the broadcast booth at Monday’s Boston Marathon for WBZ TV, the local CBS affiliate. Last year, she finished a disappointing seventh, in extremely challenging weather conditions, with a time of 2:46:31, though there was no indication she was dealing with injury until the late fall.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BwhvkaNFxmq/

The marathoner has had one of the strongest running careers in American distance history. She began as a high school star, continued her dominance at the University of North Carolina, and then went on to win Olympic and World Championships medals, and set American records which still stand today.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BwRt4tll7y8/

Flanagan is also “interning” under Bowerman Track Club coach Jerry Schumacher, with a view to becoming a coach herself, in a field dominated by men. She is the de facto leader of the women in the club, collectively known as the Bowerman Babes, who also include track stars Colleen Quigley, Shelby Houlihan and Courtney Frerichs.

 

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