Lively crowd cheers on 2,600+ athletes running in LI Marathon

EAST MEADOW, N.Y. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — And they’re off! The Long Island Marathon began Sunday morning in Eisenhower Park, and thousands of competing athletes were supported by cheering fans lining the route.

The race began at 7:30 a.m., when over 2,600 runners began pounding the pavement in the Jovia-sponsored event that attracted hundreds of supporters.

While competitors came from all over the country running in the half and full marathons, Long Islanders came out on top.

Seaford native and Westbury resident Ryan Clifford, 27, clinched the full marathon win with a time of 2:31:04.5, and shared his excitement (and fatigue) with 1010 WINS/WCBS 880.

“I had a lot of fun. The weather was perfect. A little tired, but, you know, obviously I guess that comes with running a marathon,” Clifford said.

In first for the half marathon was Paul Markovina, 23, of Old Westbury. Markovina told 1010 WINS/WCBS 880 that he had been preparing for the race…but he didn’t tell his parents.

“Just basically running decent mileage, between 60 and 70 miles a week, a light workout every week,” Markovina said about his preparation, which his mother, Maria, knew nothing about.

“He told me the last minute, ‘Mom, Dad, I’m going to be running the half marathon tomorrow,’ and we were like, what?,” Maria said.

In first for the women’s marathon was Cristin Delaney-Guille, 43, of Long Beach with a time of 3:03:09.7, while Kelly Iocca of Oakdale found success finishing first among the women in her first half marathon.

“I don’t even have words for this. This is my first half marathon, so I’m just so excited and just feeling all the emotions right now,” Iocca said after her 1:22:04.8 victory.

Road closures affecting Long Island due to the marathon wrapped up midday.