Jessica McClain, a 41-year-old U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier from Phoenix, made history Tuesday by becoming the first woman to win the overall competition in the Crown City Classic 12K race in Coronado.
McClain was sitting in fourth place at the turnaround on Silver Strand Boulevard, then shot past the three males in front of her to win the race in 41 minutes and 30 seconds, race officials said.
She finished one minute and 54 seconds ahead of the top-finishing male, Daniel McCarty of Nevada, who won the men’s race in 43 minutes and 24 seconds.
“I love it,” McClain said when asked how it felt being the first woman to win the overall race. “The guys definitely set a good pace up top, I gotta admit. It’s the capital of the Fourth of July in all of the U.S. You’ve got to be on Coronado Island.”
McClain said she was inspired by the thousands of spectators who lined the streets for the event’s 50th year, and some words of wisdom from former coaches.
“Over the years of running all my coaches said, ‘Keep your eyes up. Reel people in slowly,’ so I just kept cranking,” she said. “All the cheers from the (spectators) coming my way was awesome.”
McClain won the woman’s portion of the race for the third straight year.
Maggie Gibbs of Peoria, Arizona, finished second among the women. Coronado’s Jeff Tomaszewski placed second in the men’s 12K. Coronado’s Tim Hendricks won the men’s 5K, with Jesse Smith of San Diego coming in second.
In the women’s 5K, Savannah Vasquez of San Marcos snagged first, followed by Coronado’s Grace Trucilla.
City News Service contributed to this article.