Sunday, Nov. 1 was supposed to be the running of the 50th annual NYC Marathon. This year we will not be seeing 50,000-plus entrants taking part in the world’s largest marathon as they trek across the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge onto Fourth Avenue through Bay Ridge, Sunset Park and Park Slope on their way to the finish line in Central Park.
However, the New York Road Runners organization has decided to host a virtual New York City Marathon. Each runner that has pre-registered has between Oct. 17 and Nov. 1 to complete 26.2 miles in one day, literally anywhere in the world! If they complete the full race to the satisfaction of the Road Runners organization, they will be sent a finisher’s medal and a marathon-branded running buff shirt.
We were informed the next live citywide marathon is scheduled for Nov. 7, 2021.
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Locally, we offer our congratulations to Kathy Ioannou, who recently completed the 46th annual U.S. Marine Corps Virtual Marathon. The in-person event usually starts in Washington, D.C., with the finish line near the Marine Corps Iwo Jima Monument in Arlington, Va. It’s the fourth-largest marathon in the U.S.
Ioannou, the vice president of Bay Ridge Cares, was awarded a finisher’s medal, which contains actual volcanic ash from Iwo Jima. On the attached ribbon are film strips of the flag-raising on Mount Suribachi of that Pacific Island during World War II. The ribbon was designed in commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima.
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Fran Garber-Cohen, president of the Regina Opera Company, has announced the suspension of live concerts at Our Lady of Perpetual Help’s school auditorium due to the coronavirus pandemic. In the interim, they are offering, cost-free, the New York Virtual Opera Fest via the opera company’s YouTube channel. The program includes splendid past performances by the community-based organization.
May her memory be a blessing 
Has Gowanus Tunnel proposal been shafted – or postponed for years?