S.F. women’s team breaks world record for 100

Apr 23, 2023

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Peggy Lavelle, 62, runs the last leg of the women's relay race at Cox Stadium at San Francisco State University. She is the only person who has run the race four times, starting as a 16-year-old in 1977.

Samantha Forde runs to hand off the baton during the record-breaking relay race.

Fiona McCusker prepares to hand the baton to Hailey Gunderson during the 100-mile relay race.

Hailey Gunderson runs to hand off the baton in the relay race.

Thia Angelo collapses after her leg of 5:35 in the relay race.

Peggy Lavelle runs the last leg for the women's relay team, which broke the world record for the 100-mile event.

A team of 100 San Franciscans broke the world record for the women's 100 x 1-mile relay race by more than five minutes Saturday, according to the race's director.

The women ran the race in 9 hours, 18 minutes and 32 seconds total, said Shawn Sax, relay director of the event at San Francisco State University's Cox Stadium. That's an average pace of 5:35 a mile.

The previous record, held by the Canadian Women's Miler's Club since 1999, was 9 hours, 23 minutes and 39 seconds — about a 5:38-mile pace.

It's not San Francisco's first time holding the title. Runners with connections to the city broke the record in 1977, 1995 and 1997.

"We’re thrilled to bring the women's 100 x 1-mile relay record back to San Francisco," Sax said. "This relay illustrates the continued excellence of the city's women runners and the power of our running community."

Sarah Swanger, who is nearly five months pregnant, grabs the baton from Cate Peters during the relay race.

The results will be submitted to Guinness World Records for verification, a process that can take three months.

The race's registrants ranged in age from 13 to 63, with a mix of ultramarathoners and sprinters. It included cancer survivors and a woman who is nearly five months pregnant.

The event raised more than $5,000 for Girls on the Run, a nonprofit that seeks to increase girls’ access to and empowerment through running at under-resourced schools in the city.

Peggy Lavelle, 62, who first ran the relay in 1977 as a 16-year-old high school junior, helped break the record a fourth time.

"It's great to see so much support for a women's event in sports," said Lavelle, the final runner in the relay. "In my era, women weren't always accepted in sports … It just shows how far we’ve come."

The event was sponsored by Nike and co-hosted by the San Francisco Road Runners, Dolphin South End Runners, Impala Racing Team, Pamakid Runners and Olympic Club Foundation. A Runner's Mind, Lululemon, Sports Basement, Skratch and others made in-kind donations to the event.

Reach Danielle Echeverria: [email protected]; Twitter: @DanielleEchev