Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 13, 1994 TAG: 9410130046
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: NEW YORK LENGTH: Medium
Appropriately, the finish line was the place where some 3,000 to 4,000 people gathered to pay tribute to Lebow, who died Sunday of brain cancer. He was 62.
``The marathon is a living legacy that few people can claim,'' said Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, one of five speakers, before the emotional crowd held hands and walked across the finish line. ``It's a legacy the city is grateful for.
``If it weren't for Fred, the marathon wouldn't have happened. The race was his idea and he executed it. ... We're here to honor him, to thank him. When the marathon is run in a few weeks [Nov. 6], everyone who crosses the finish line will dedicate the race to him.''
An emotional Grete Waitz, the nine-time women's champion, said Lebow ``was more than the man who started the New York City Marathon.''
``He was always full of ideas,'' said Waitz, who accompained Lebow in running the 1992 race - less than three years after he first was stricken with cancer. ``He laid the groundwork for marathons around the world.
``He touched a lot of lives, including mine,'' she said, sobbing. ``He was a warm and caring man. He wanted me to win the marathon a 10th time. Crossing the finish line with Fred in 1992 meant more to me than a possible 10th victory.
``Fred, you will be missed but your memory will always be with me.''
Allan Steinfeld, president of the New York Road Runners Club, also was choked with emotion during his speech.
``Today is a beautiful day, the type of day that Fred would have loved to be in the park and running,'' Steinfeld said of Lebow, who ran 69 marathons in 30 countries.
by CNB