Milestones
1977: The first year of the race, known as the Bonne Bell Mini Marathon, draws 2,231 women. Only 200 were expected.
High school senior Lynn Jennings, 17, wins the first race in a time of 34:31.
1978: Future Olympic gold medalist Joan Benoit Samuelson wins the race with a time of 33:16, setting the American record.
The race moves to the Boston Common and the course is certified on its present route.
1979-1981: First-place finishers Margaret Groos (1979), Patti (Lyons) Catalano (1980), and Jan Merrill (1981) set American records on the course.
1983: Almost 9,000 women participate in the race, making it the largest women’s sporting event in the world.
1985: Tufts Health Plan becomes the title sponsor of the race, enhancing the event’s focus on physical fitness and women’s health. The first day-long Celebration of Health and Fitness for the whole family is held. The Celebration of Health and Fitness includes a 1K Walk for Kids, pre-race aerobics, and a post-race stretch, as well as a sports massage, body composition testing, cholesterol screenings, and literature distribution on how to lead a healthy lifestyle.
1988: Twenty-five-year-old Anne Hannam of New Zealand sets the current course record with a time of 31:38.
1989: Kids get into the act with the first 1K Fitness Walk for children.
1993: At the age of 93, Ruth Rothfarb of Cambridge, MA, crosses the finish line to become the oldest woman to complete the 10K.
Wheelchair racer and six-time Boston Marathon winner Candace Cable of Truckee, CA, sets the course record in her category with a time of 27:16.
1994: The number of women participating begins to climb again, marking a resurgence for the race.
USA Track & Field selects the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women as the National 10K Championship Race. Tufts Health Plan will hold this designation for 12 of the next 13 years.
1995: Lynn Jennings places third in her final Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women performance. Her career at the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women includes six first-place finishes, five second-place finishes, and two third-place finishes.
1998: Libby Hickman (31:56) of Fort Collins, CO, wins, beating Catherine Ndereba of Kenya, who had been favored to break the course record.
2000: U.S. Track & Field selects the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women as the National 10K Championship Race for the 7th year in a row.
Tufts Health Plan 10K again holds the title of the largest women's-only 10K in the nation for the fourth consecutive year with 6,537 registered runners.
2002: In her debut 10K race, Marla Runyan beats Kenya’s Teresa Wanjiku to capture the USA National 10K Championship at the 26th annual Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women in the closest finish in history. Runyan, the USATF National 5K and U.S. outdoor 5,000 meter champion, finishes at 31:46, edging Wanjiku by two-tenths of a second.
2007: The Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women features one of the strongest elite fields athletes ever assembled. Olympic Bronze Medalist in the marathon and 2007 USA Women’s Marathon Champion Deena Kastor defeats a deep field of over 50 elite runners, including two-time Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women Champion Katie McGregor, to win the race and the USATF Women’s 10K Championship title with a time of 32:01.