# Merry Lepper

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**Merry Lepper** (born December 31, 1942)[1] is a former [American](/source/United_States) long-distance runner from [California](/source/California) who is recognized by the [International Association of Athletics Federations](/source/International_Association_of_Athletics_Federations) as having set a world best in the [marathon](/source/Marathon) on December 16, 1963, with a time of 3:37:07 at the [Western Hemisphere Marathon](/source/Western_Hemisphere_Marathon) in [Culver City, California](/source/Culver_City,_California).[2][3][4]["nb" 1]

In the early 1960s, Lepper trained with Lyn Carman (also from California)["nb" 2]and the pair began to run unofficially in [road races](/source/Road_running).[5] At the 1963 Western Hemisphere Marathon, the two women hid along the sidelines then joined the men just after the start.[5] A race official attempted to remove them from the course and Carman reportedly yelled, "I have the right to use public streets for running!"[5][6] The women were timed by a sympathetic [AAU](/source/Amateur_Athletic_Union) official; Carman eventually dropped out around the 20 mile mark, but Lepper finished with a time of 3:37:07 .[5][7][8]

Carman would eventually win the [Santa Barbara Marathon](/source/Santa_Barbara_Marathon) in 1966, 1969, and 1970, and the [World Masters Marathon](/source/Las_Vegas_Marathon) in 1969.[8]

The book "Marathon Crasher: The Life and Times of Merry Lepper, the First American Woman to Run a Marathon" (2012), by LA-based sports journalist David Davis, tells of Merry Lepper's 1963 marathon.[9][10] However, in 1959, [Arlene Pieper](/source/Arlene_Pieper) (also an American) became the first woman to officially finish a marathon in America when she finished the [Pikes Peak Marathon](/source/Pikes_Peak_Marathon).[11][12] Davis's book states, "Without discounting her [Pieper's] achievement, Pikes Peak marathon is considered to be more of an endurance climb, with much walking involved, as opposed to a competitive marathon race."[13]

In 2013, Lepper received a commendation from Culver City.[2] The commendation reads in part: "Now, therefore, the City Council of the City of Culver City, California, hereby congratulates and commends Merry Lepper, a shining example of how one person can overcome tremendous hurdles to fulfill a dream and, in the process, pave the way for generations to come."[2]

## References

1. Rabe, John. ["Fifty Years Later, A Celebration For Merry Lepper's Historic Marathon"](http://onlyagame.wbur.org/2013/12/14/lepper-female-marathon-pioneer). Retrieved 14 December 2013.

1. Rabe, John (2013-12-12). ["50 years later, Culver City honors first female marathoner"](https://www.scpr.org/programs/offramp/2013/12/12/35089/50-years-later-culver-city-honors-first-female-mar/). *Southern California Public Radio*. Retrieved 2019-06-17.

1. ["12th IAAF World Championships In Athletics: IAAF Statistics Handbook. Berlin 2009."](https://web.archive.org/web/20110629134819/http://www.iaaf.org/mm/document/competitions/competition/05/15/63/20090706014834_httppostedfile_p345-688_11303.pdf). Monte Carlo: IAAF Media & Public Relations Department. 2009. p. 653. Archived from [the original](http://www.iaaf.org/mm/document/competitions/competition/05/15/63/20090706014834_httppostedfile_p345-688_11303.pdf) on June 29, 2011. Retrieved May 20, 2010.

1. Noakes, Tim (2003). *The Lore of Running*. Fourth ed. [Oxford University Press](/source/Oxford_University_Press). p. 675. ISBN 0-87322-959-2.

1. Kuscsik, Nina (1977), "The History of Women's Participation in the Marathon", *Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences*. **301** (The Marathon: Physiological, Medical, Epidemiological, and Psychological Studies): 862–876, [Bibcode:1977NYASA.301..862K](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1977NYASA.301..862K). [doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.1977.tb38253.x](https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1977.tb38253.x). [S2CID 84881172](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:84881172)

1. Anderson, Ruth (1978). *The Complete Woman Runner*. World Publications.

1. ["The Fight To Establish The Women's Marathon Race"](http://www.marathonguide.com/history/olympicmarathons/chapter25.cfm). *www.marathonguide.com*. Retrieved 2019-06-17.

1. ["Santa Barbara Marathon"](https://www.arrs.run/HP_SBbMa.htm). *Association of Road Racing Statisticians*. Retrieved May 10, 2010.

1. Rabe, John (2012-06-05). ["Merry Lepper, first American woman to run a marathon: 1963, Culver City"](https://www.scpr.org/programs/offramp/2012/06/05/26805/merry-lepper-first-american-woman-to-run-a-maratho/). *Southern California Public Radio*. Retrieved 2019-06-17.

1. [*Marathon Crasher: The Life and Times of Merry Lepper, the First American Woman to Run a Marathon*](https://www.amazon.com/Marathon-Crasher-Lepper-American-ebook/dp/B0080K36TY/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1338924717&sr=1-1). Thomas Dunne Books. 5 June 2012. Retrieved 2019-06-17. – via www.amazon.com.

1. ["First woman to run marathon in US - PPM"](https://web.archive.org/web/20170211125822/http://www.pikespeakmarathon.org/mystique.htm). Archived from [the original](http://www.pikespeakmarathon.org/mystique.htm) on 2017-02-11. Retrieved 2014-09-19.

1. ["House put - Arlenepieper"](https://www.arlenepieper.com/). Retrieved 2019-06-17.

1. Davis, David (2012-06-05). [*Marathon Crasher: The Life and Times of Merry Lepper, the First American Woman to Run a Marathon*](https://books.google.com/books?id=VaC0QDd7C3AC&q=%22arlene+pieper%22&pg=PA31). St. Martin's Press. ISBN 9781466817104.

1. According to the Association of Road Racing Statisticians, the course for the Western Hemisphere Marathon was short in 1962 and 1963.[14] The ARRS also notes the date of the race as December 14, 1963.[14][15]

1. Carman has been reported as also being in her early 20s, however, data compiled by the Association of Road Racing Statisticians indicates that she would have been 27 years old.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Merry Lepper](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merry_Lepper) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merry_Lepper?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.