The documentary, "We ARE Distance Runners: Untold Stories of African American Athletes", which features Dick Gregory, is now available on Vimeo

DALLAS - Nov. 12, 2024 - PRLog -- We ARE Distance Runners: Untold Stories of African American Athletes is now available on Vimeo after winning nineteen film festival awards around the world. It dispels the myth that African Americans are sprinters, not distance runners, by profiling six National Black Distance Running Hall of Fame inductees, who overcame childhood challenges to become national and world recordholders, world history makers, and community activist in the running community. Their influence and efforts started the ethnic minority running boom in the US. The interviewees are

• Dick Gregory
• Dr. Ronald Gregory
• Anthony (Tony) Renard Reed
• Shalisa (Lisa) Davis
• Alphonzo Jackson
• Lisa Felder

Whether you're training for your first 5K walk or recovering from your 100th marathon, these interviews will motivate and inspire people to achieve their goals!!! Imagine

• Being so sickly as a child, your doctors predicted you may not live past twenty years old. You defied the odds and ran a 5K in 16:29 and half marathon in 1:15:29 at 50 years old.
• Being a 238-pound divorced mother. Your son's soccer coach encourages you to walk around the playing field to keep warm while they practice. You walked out of your comfort zone that day, finished over 450 marathons and ultras, and even recovered from cancer.
• Not having hot water at home. Thus, you ran high school cross-country and track so you could take hot showers after practice. Later, you're joined by Muhammad Ali as you run 3,500 miles from LA to NYC.
• Being so fast in high school that your coach stopped training you to win races. Instead, he trained you to set national high school one- and two-mile records.
• Not being fast enough to win a high school race. Thirty years later, you set a world marathon record for women.
• Being told that you didn't look like a distance runner at your first marathon. Eighteen months later, you win first place in a marathon's under thirty age group. Twenty-five years later, you make world marathon history.

Watch We ARE Distance Runners: Untold Stories of African American Athletes to see how these individuals beat childhood poverty, medical diagnoses, and naysayers to become national and world record holders, history makers, and accomplished distance runners from the mile to the marathon. Historical information about Ted Corbitt's influence on the New York City Marathon is also included.

This documentary was written and directed by Anthony Renard Reed and filmed in Dallas TX, Oakland CA, Newport News VA, St. Louis MO, Chicago IL, Antarctica, and Kenya. His previous documentary was Breaking Three Hours: Trailblazing African American Women Marathoners is available on various streaming services, include Prime Video, Tubi, and YouTube. Recently, he was one of eight recipients of the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition Hero Award.

About National Black Marathoners' Association: The National Black Marathoners Association (NBMA) is the USA's largest, not-for-profit organization of men and women that is dedicated to encouraging Black Americans and others to pursue a healthy lifestyle through running and walking. It is open to everyone, regardless of their athletic ability or previous marathon experience. Over 60% of our members have never run a marathon. Visit www.BlackMarathoners.org for more information.