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Boston Globe
20 hours ago
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Nina Kuscsik, the first official female winner of the Boston Marathon, has died at the age of 86
Roberta Gibb, who ran Boston in 1966, was ignored by BAA officials. But when Kathrine Switzer obtained a bib the following year by using her initials on the entry form, gatekeeper Jock Semple made headlines by trying to rip off her number in mid-race. Advertisement Ms. Kuscsik, who made her marathon debut in Boston in 1969, became a runner by accident. Born Nina Louise Marmorino in Brooklyn, she was a versatile athlete, winning New York state championships in cycling, speedskating, and roller skating in the same year. But when her bicycle tire blew out in 1967, she decided to use her feet to stay in shape. 'I couldn't wait the two weeks it took to get [the tire],' Ms. Kuscsik said. 'For running all you need is a pair of shoes.' But the sight of a woman running laps around her Long Island block attracted notice. 'Every time it rained while I was training the police would stop me because they thought I was in trouble, that I was running away from something,' she said. Advertisement Ms. Kuscsik ran Boston unofficially three times. 'I knew that women weren't official but that didn't bother me at all,' she said. Along the way she developed an amicable rivalry with Sara Mae Berman, who won the final three unofficial races. 'Nina and I were not enemies, we were friends,' Ms. Berman recalled recently. 'When we ran, yes, we were competing, but each of us was pushing the other to do our best run for the day.' In 1970, Ms. Kuscsik, the mother of three, was the only female among 127 entrants in the inaugural New York City Marathon. The following year, after she made a proposal at the AAU conference to allow women to compete formally, the organization agreed to allow 'certain women' to race. Ms. Kuscsik decided that the 1972 Boston race would be a suitable site for a breakthrough. 'Boston was the place,' she said. 'It was the first race I had ever run. I didn't know there were any others.' The women's status as official competitors came with restrictions. They had to meet the men's qualifying standard and were required to have a separate start in Hopkinton. 'We drew a line on the sidewalk,' Ms. Kuscsik said, 'and everyone went off whenever they wanted to.' After checking the best times of her seven rivals, she reckoned that she had a good chance to win. But before the midway point of the race Ms. Kuscsik, who was wearing a Dacron-and-cotton, buttoned blouse and Danskin shorts, experienced gastrointestinal misery that soon became visible. 'What a weird experience that was,' she said. 'People were clapping as I went by them and then they stopped clapping because there was no other woman around. But I thought they'd stopped clapping because of what they saw.' Advertisement Her winning time of 3 hours, 10 minutes, 26 seconds she deemed as 'pretty lousy' despite her outclocking more than 600 men. But Ms. Kuscsik's victory margin of 10:09 still stands as a record. 'A very gutsy effort,' said Berman. 'All of us were proud of her.' The photo of men's winner Olavi Suomalainen kissing Ms. Kuscsik's cheek was published around the world. 'I was amazed at the amount of coverage,' she said. 'I didn't realize I was a part of a historic movement.' That autumn, Ms. Kuscsik continued her campaign for equal treatment at the New York event where she was one of 'Six Who Sat' at the starting line with signs to protest the AAU's 'archaic' requirement that the women start 10 minutes before or after the men. The rule was dropped later that year. Ms. Kuscsik, who won that race, went on to set a world record of 6:35:53 for 50 miles in Central Park and won the Empire State Building Run-Up three straight times. Ms. Kuscsik, who later chaired USA Track & Field's women's long-distance running committee, cofounded what became the New York Mini 10K, the first female-only road race. She also advocated for the women's marathon to be added to the Olympic program, which it was in 1984. Had the event existed in 1972, Ms. Kuscsik likely would have made the US team for Munich. And her Boston triumph would have earned her $150,000, plus $50,000 for her course record. 'I'm happy that I was where I was when I was,' she said. 'It was a different world then.' Advertisement Ms. Kuscsik, who was divorced, became a patient representative at Mount Sinai Medical Center after working as a nurse. She is survived by daughter Christina and sons Stephen and Timothy. John Powers can be reached at
Boston Globe
21 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Kim Woodburn, British TV's no-nonsense ‘Queen of Clean,' dies at 83
Advertisement She was 60 years old at the time, and she nailed the audition, which involved scrutinizing a young woman's grimy flat in West London. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'Well, this is a flaming comic opera, isn't it,' Ms. Woodburn declared in the woman's terrifyingly filthy kitchen, as she recalled in her 2006 memoir, 'Unbeaten: The Story of My Brutal Childhood.' 'You look so clean yourself, and yet you live like this. Talk about fur coat, no knickers!' Her salty slang was one of the great pleasures of the show, which a Lifetime network executive once described as 'Queer Eye' meets 'Absolutely Fabulous' meets 'The Weakest Link.' The network imported the series to the United States for a few seasons. Ms. Woodburn, usually clad in a crisp white uniform and rubber gloves trimmed with pink feathers -- one reviewer described her as a cross between Mother Teresa and the British madam Miss Whiplash -- would shame and bully hapless homemakers week after week: 'Don't be a mucky puppy underfoot!' 'Scrub, dear, don't tickle!' 'What in the name of normal is all this?' Advertisement MacKenzie, wearing a white lab coat, played scientist, taking samples from sticky counters, from which she always seemed to discover evidence of E. coli, bubonic plague or toxic mold spores. Maggots were a recurring theme. Oprah Winfrey devoted an episode of her show to the pair, and they wrote a housekeeping manual -- a bestseller in Britain. Their show ran from 2003 to 2009 (the American version ran from 2004 to 2006) and spawned 'Too Posh to Wash,' a spinoff about personal hygiene. One of its six episodes featured a woman who never laundered her bra. The co-stars were an irresistible team, though Ms. Woodburn -- 'camp as Christmas,' as The Telegraph described her -- was the standout. After the series ended, she appeared on 'I'm a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here' (in which celebrities are 'trapped' in a 'jungle'; Ms. Woodburn came in second) and 'Celebrity Come Dine With Me' (celebrities cook each other meals; Ms. Woodburn got squiffy, or pretended to be). Most notoriously, she was in the cast of 'Celebrity Big Brother,' in which demi-celebrities are confined together in a house and viewers vote on who gets the heave-ho. Ms. Woodburn would regularly spar with her housemates. 'Go away, you adulterer,' she blasted one, Jamie O'Hara, a British footballer, whom she described as a 'chicken-livered bugger.' When she berated Coleen Nolan, another housemate, calling her 'a two-faced maggot,' security bustled Ms. Woodburn off the show. Advertisement Was it pantomime? Nobody cared. Her behavior and reputation as the rudest woman on television was the stuff ratings are made from, and viewers tuned in by the millions to watch her many dust-ups, which canny television presenters invited her to perform on many more shows. MacKenzie stayed in television, too, but had a less explosive career. 'R.I.P. Kim,' Anita Singh of The Telegraph wrote this week. 'You were spectacularly rude. And, more often than not, you were right.' Patricia Mary McKenzie was born March 25, 1942, in Eastney, a district of Portsmouth on the South Coast, to Richard and Mary Patricia (Shaw) McKenzie. Her father served in the Royal Marines. Her upbringing was horrific. Her parents separated when she was young, and Pat, as she was known, was physically abused by her alcoholic mother and occasionally by her mother's boyfriend. She had stints in foster homes, group homes and a convent. Blind in one eye, Pat suffered in school, which she left at 15 to go to work, turning over her earnings to her mother. At 16, she left home and worked where she could -- in pubs, hotels and department stores, where she sold cosmetics. In her early 20s, she changed her name to Kim, after actress Kim Novak, and to separate herself from her mother, who also went by Pat. In her memoir, Ms. Woodburn wrote of delivering a stillborn baby when she was 23 and burying him in a park in Liverpool, where she was living at the time, digging his grave with a wooden spoon. When the book came out, she was questioned by the police for concealing the baby's birth, but she was never charged with a crime. Advertisement Her first marriage, to an abusive, adulterous police officer, ended in divorce in 1975. She married Pete Woodburn, another police officer, in 1979. Kim Woodburn worked as a beautician and then as a social worker caring for girls in juvenile detention centers. After she married Woodburn, the two became live-in housekeepers for wealthy families in the United States, Norway and the United Kingdom. Pete Woodburn survives her. It was while Kim Woodburn and her husband were working for a Saudi Arabian sheikh at his house in Kent -- a dream job, she said, with the family in residence only six weeks a year -- when she went on the audition that would lead to her TV fame. The 'Queen of Clean,' as the British tabloids called her, was often called on to provide household tips. One of her top five involved dinner parties. Her advice: 'Don't have one.' This article originally appeared in
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Woman, 66, arrested on suspicion of 'Rolex' murder of film director in London home
A woman has been arrested on suspcion of murder after an award-winning film director was found stabbed to death in her flat near Regent's Park. The body of Jennifer Abbott was discovered in her home in Mornington Place in Camden at 6pm on Friday with tape over her mouth. Scotland Yard believe the 69-year-old could have been targeted for her diamond encrusted Rolex watch that was missing from her home. The Met Police said a 66-year-old woman was arrested on Wednesday, 18 June on suspicion of her murder. She remained in police custody on Thursday. A post-mortem examination, which took place on Sunday, 15 June, gave Ms Abbott's cause of death as sharp force trauma. The writer and director, described as 'lovely' by neighbours, previously worked in the creative industries and was also known professionally as Sarah Steinberg. Her family described her as 'beautiful' in a moving tribute. A card left with flowers at the scene read: 'My beautiful aunty. Beautiful Jenny. We all miss you so much.' Her social media says she spent time growing up in London, studying Arts and Science at Merton Technical College and attending Pelham High School in Wimbledon. She later relocated to Los Angeles where pictures on her Facebook page show her rubbing shoulders with stars including Dan Ackroyd, Paris Hilton and Kate Hudson. Ms Abbot had run a film production company and made a documentary she directed called 'Gods of War' which she said won several awards. Officers found her with multiple stab injuries and she was pronounced dead at the scene. She was last seen by neighbours three days earlier walking her Corgi dog Prince in the Shanagher/PA Wire) Neighbours said the alarm was raised shortly before she was discovered by family members who were concerned after hearing her dog barking inside Ms Abbott's home. A neighbour, who did not want to be named, said her son went out to help Ms Abbott's niece and the pair made the harrowing discovery. Investigators fear she may have been killed for her diamond-encrusted Rolex. Her pet Corgi had been shut in the bathroom for three days but survived. The neighbour said: "My son broke the door down. We heard her niece shouting: 'Somebody help me, somebody help' and we went out and asked 'what's wrong?' "She said: 'I haven't heard from my aunty in four days. Something's wrong - break the door down'. "I was holding the door open downstairs and my son was upstairs and then I heard her niece screaming and saying: 'Oh my God, she's been murdered'. She had tape across her mouth. "Her corgi was locked in the bathroom for three days. That poor dog, he couldn't even drink any water, it's amazing he was even still alive." She said her neighbour was "mysterious, and very smart and intelligent". "We would chat in the street most of the time. I used to walk around the block with her with her dog," she said. "I can't believe we won't see her walking the corgi any more. She was very exuberant, very vivacious. "She had done a lot of things in her life. She was a doctor but she was also an actor and director in America. She'd directed a movie and I looked at it on YouTube and saw her interviewed in Los Angeles. "She was a character. She was lovely. "You're never going to see her again and you just can't take it in. I said to my son: 'I can't believe we were sitting here in the living room, maybe watching television, while she was over there going through that and we didn't know." Detective Inspector Barry Hart, of Homicide Command, Specialist Crime North, said: 'Our deepest sympathies are with the victim's loved ones who are being supported by specialist officers at this time. 'We thank the local community for their patience as we continue to investigate this shocking crime. This arrest marks a significant step forward. There are several lines of enquiry ongoing, and we are working hard to establish the exact circumstances of this incident. 'Locals can expect to see an increased police presence in the area while we conduct our enquires.' If anyone witnessed the incident, or has any information that can help the investigation, please contact the police as a matter of urgency on 101 quoting 6470/13JUN. To remain anonymous, call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visit
NDTV
2 days ago
- NDTV
US Banker Sues Employer Over Chucky Doll Prank, Claims It Gave Her PTSD And Ruined Career
A former employee of a US bank is suing her ex-employer on allegations that a manager placed a Chucky doll in her office chair despite knowing she was afraid of dolls. According to the New York Post, Debra Jones, who worked at North Carolina's Truist Bank, filed a complaint against her former company on May 21. In her complaint, she alleged that she was "subjected to discrimination and retaliation based on her being a qualified individual with disabilities". She is now seeking compensatory damages from the bank, according to the complaint filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Debra Jones said she began her employment at Truist Bank in April 2024, the outlet reported. In her complaint, she stated that she was diagnosed with "major depressive disorder, generalised anxiety disorder, and autoimmune disorder vitiligo." She alleged that her employer knew she had those medical conditions and her fear of dolls. In June 2024, during the last week of new hire training, Ms Jones said that her manager placed a Chucky doll in her office chair. Notably, the doll is a fictitious character from the 1988 slasher horror film 'Child's Play'. In her complaint, she said that the manager's actions interfered with her training and worsened her medical condition. She also alleged that her manager laughed when he saw her reaction to seeing the Chucky doll. On the same day, Ms Jones was treated by a medical provider and was placed on medical leave for eight weeks. She then received a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after the Chucky incident. Ms Jones returned to work in August 2024 and was assigned a new manager and was allowed to leave work at 3 pm, three times a week, for treatment of her autoimmune disorder. Then, three months later, she said that the new manager made a joke in front of her and the team about her being "always fraudulent vigilant," after she discovered a fraudulent check. Ms Jones said she found the joke offensive. In her complaint, she argued that she was being treated differently when she made mistakes, and that the different treatment was based on her disabilities. She also alleged that she was subjected to retaliation and discrimination by her new manager. In January, Ms Jones alleged that another manager told her that her reasonable accommodation of leaving work at 3 pm was affecting the other employees who needed time off. They also told her that the job might not be a good fit for her and that she can't keep using her emotional and anxiety problems as an excuse. They also allegedly told her that she would be fired if she didn't improve. In her complaint, Ms Jones claimed that she experienced panic attacks after meetings with the two managers and was later taken out of work for treatment of her disabilities. Then, in March 2025, she was notified by her employer to pick up her personal belongings at the office. She argued that she experienced retaliation, discrimination and different treatment based on disabilities. She also stated that the actions of the bank have led to lost wages and caused her emotional pain and mental anguish.
Rhyl Journal
2 days ago
- Business
- Rhyl Journal
Alwen Williams appointed new Chief Executive of North Wales CJC
Her appointment follows five years of leading the region's Growth Deal as portfolio director at the CJC - known as Ambition North Wales. The CJC is a new regional local government organisation, created by the Welsh Government, with statutory responsibility for producing a regional transport plan, regional strategic development plan, and enhancing and promoting regional economic well-being. The additional responsibilities assumed by Ambition North Wales necessitated the creation of the full-time chief executive role. Ms Williams will now lead the CJC, which also involves continuing to drive the delivery of the North Wales Growth Deal and collaborating with partners to deliver the Flintshire and Wrexham Investment Zone. She said: "I'm delighted to have been appointed into this exciting role on a permanent and full-time basis. "North Wales is my home and a place I care about deeply. "It's a real privilege to be in a role that contributes directly towards a thriving future for our region." Councillor Mark Pritchard, Chair of Ambition North Wales and Wrexham Council Leader, said: "This chief executive role is crucial to the development of North Wales as a region and in ensuring we can demonstrate our worth on a national and even global stage." "The responsibilities that now sit within Ambition North Wales as the region's Corporate Joint Committee are vast and require exceptional leadership to deliver. "Alwen's role now is to deliver for North Wales and take the region forward into the future." Councillor Charlie McCoubrey, vice-chair of Ambition North Wales and Leader of Conwy County Borough Council, added: "Alwen is an exceptional leader and collaborator with the skills to ensure Ambition North Wales continues to deliver for the region." "What she has achieved over the past five years has really demonstrated her abilities to bring partners across the region together with a clear vision focused on improving the economic, social and environmental well-being of North Wales." Before joining Ambition North Wales in 2019, Ms Williams had a 24-year career with BT plc and infrastructure provider Openreach Ltd in various strategic and operational leadership roles. She returned to North Wales, having grown up in Gwytherin, near Llangernyw, and attended Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy, Llanrwst. Ms Williams holds an MSc in Systems Thinking and a first-class BA (hons) in Leadership and Management from the Open University. Her contributions to business during her career in telecommunications have been recognised with honorary fellowships from the University of Wales Trinity St David's and Wrexham University. Currently residing in Mold with her husband Damian, Ms Williams is also a member of the Kings Trust Cymru's development committee and a trustee of the Welsh Sports Foundation, a national charity committed to removing financial barriers to sport and physical activity for children and young people.
