NY Marathon Dream Comes True for Hopatcong Woman

Sunday was a red-letter day for Hopatcong's Dorothy Ruderman.

The 22-year-old runner took on her first marathon in a very public event, the 2013 ING New York City Marathon. Her Twitter feed shows she went through many of the usual—and sometimes downright unpleasant—pre-race traditions of marathoners: loading up on carbohydrates for energy, throwing up, shoving down what she called "pre-race nightmares." But nothing held her back: She managed to start—and finish—the 26.2 mile trek.

She completed the run in just under six hours: Her unofficial time according to race organizers was five hours, 59 minutes and five seconds. Ruderman came in a bit behind women's marathon winner Priscah Jeptoo of Kenya, who finished in just under two and a half hours; the Hopatcong woman was in 47,294th place overall, in 17,912th place among female runners and 588th in her age group.

In all, a record 50,740 people started the race, according to The Saratogian.

Ruderman ran specifically to represent the U.S. Tennis Association. She also took on the challenge to honor her late father, Roman Ruderman, a Belorussian wrestling champion and Olympic coach who died suddenly in 2011.

As of press time, Dorothy Ruderman's Twitter feed had not been updated since 1:13 p.m. Sunday. Patch assumes (and hopes) the young woman and champion is getting some well-earned rest.