Creating a strong culture of running in New York

New York Road Runners recently hosted a sold-out Citizens Queens 10K this past June with over 10,000 runners from across the five boroughs participating. The Citizens Queens 10K is part of the organization’s Five Borough Series and has taken place since 2012. The popularity of the marathon is a reflection not only of a post-pandemic running boom but of a culture New York Road Runners has promoted to make running accessible for all New Yorkers. 

Also known as NYRR, the nonprofit dedicates itself to creating accessible running experiences for all New Yorkers. The organization, founded in 1958, hosts multiple marathons every year for all New Yorkers to join. A native New Yorker, Rob Simmelkjaer has been with NYRR since October of 2022. Before that, Simmelkjaer had a career in sports media spanning almost two decades working for the Tennis Channel, ABC News, ESPN, NBC, among others. 

New York Nonprofit Media spoke with Simmelkjaer about his path to NYRR, the post-pandemic running boom and advice for New Yorkers wanting to pick up running.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity

You worked in media before, what made you make the switch to the nonprofit world? And what was it about New York Road Runners that made you want to be a part of it?

The reason that I went into sports media was because of the place that sports generally play in the world. It’s something that everyone can relate to. It's a safe space for so many of us. One of my favorite things about working in places like ESPN and NBC is that it [sports] was something you could talk to everyone about. No matter where you were with another person, when it came to your background, racial, religious, political, whatever it was, sports was always a safe place. Everybody can always talk about sports, and it's one of the things I really love about that space. Working in that for such a long time made me love working in the area of sports. The participatory side of sports was something that was always a big part of my life. I grew up in New York, I played baseball and ran cross country up in Riverdale. I ran the New York City Marathon, actually the year I graduated law school in 1997, which for me was one of the greatest days. I did it again in 2013 and to me, those are a couple of the best days of my life because it's such an accomplishment to run a marathon and then to do it in my home city. One of the most amazing days a New Yorker can have is to run the TCS New York City Marathon. I was lucky enough to have that experience twice. Love of running, love of the marathons and the love of this organization was something that I had for a long time. And when recruiters called me to talk about the opportunity to lead this organization, I couldn't think of too many jobs better than this, for someone like me who is a native New Yorker, a runner, and someone who knows the space of running so well. The opportunity to take everything I know from sports – a lot of it is transferable. It was a perfect combination for me. I was so thrilled to be offered the opportunity to come and lead this organization, and my time here so far has been everything I thought it would be and more.

What is it about running that forms such a strong bond and community between people?

The explosion of run clubs has been phenomenal to see. We are amazed at Roadrunners. The thing about running is it's so universal and accessible for the vast majority of people. Whether you were an athlete growing up, or you never played a sport in your life, it's something you can start at pretty much any age. There's a certain bond that people have when they get to the end of a run, and people just love to hang out and talk to each other. It's just an automatic thing that you have in common with other people. When you come together and go for a run, so much of what people are looking for, and what forms the basis for friendships and relationships, is having something in common. So you always have that one thing to talk about. People who are committed to their health and fitness, I think they do see that in other people, and they want to be around other people like that. It inspires them. It pushes them. 

We’re seeing a post-pandemic running boom, how do we keep up the momentum?

We just want to make sure that people continue to feel included in whatever way they run … There's so many different shapes and sizes that running can take. So no matter your your body type or your age or your ability there's a place in it for everyone. That's the most important thing, to make sure people feel welcomed wherever they are. That's been such a huge focus of New York Road Runners for the last number of years, especially post-pandemic, as people came back to running, [our focus] is to make everyone feel like there's a place for them in the sport. Not to preach, not to judge … but to make everyone feel like they have a place.

There are schools that don’t have a field for running, unfortunately, how do you reach schools that don’t necessarily have the resources? 

We are looking at the landscape of New York City where there are spaces to run, whether it's tracks in parks or on school grounds or other spaces that may not currently be running spaces, but maybe could be converted into running spaces. As we start to focus on going even bigger in our youth programming and the new middle school program, which we piloted last spring and are going to be expanding this year, it's a big part of that. But there's much more we want to do. We know one of the elements of that has to be safe places to run. We're looking at how we can ensure that there are spaces for these kids to run because running through the streets isn't a great option or safe option. And so that is something that is a focus. We just launched a new mission statement earlier this year, and part of it is making sure there are places and spaces to run. In our long-term strategic plan, one of the five key areas that we're focusing on is focusing our efforts on under-resourced communities of New York City and so a big part of that does have to be making sure there are good places to run.

What advice do you have for people who are interested in getting their start in running? 

It simply starts with getting a pair of shoes that are good to run in. It's great if you can grab a friend or find a group in your area. Just start with modest goals. Run a quarter mile around a track, and then maybe walk a quarter mile, then run another quarter mile. Don't feel like you have to go out and run five miles. It's something that builds on itself, and having other people to go through that journey with, to show you the ropes, to find a way to get into the sport is a really good way to do it. But you can start on your own as well. Just find a good, safe place to run. I think a track is, honestly in a lot of ways, the best place to start running, because you can measure your distance, and you see other people running and just start with something that's manageable for you. Don't put pressure on yourself. And then as time goes on, you build and you build and you build, and next thing you know, who knows? You're running a 5k.

Do you have any goals for places in the world that you’ll be running in soon?

I'm going to Paris on Sunday, and I'm going to be there for the second half of the Olympics. I'm really excited that I'm going to be there for track and field, and I'm going to see the two marathons at the end of the Olympics. And one thing that I'm really excited about is taking a run along the Seine. It's such a beautiful city and a beautiful place for running. I'm going to go over with my 15-year-old daughter, who also is a runner. She runs cross country in high school. The two of us are going to take some runs along the Seine, which I'm really excited about. And I can't think of a more beautiful place to run. The other thing I'll say is the New York Marathon is one of the six world marathons, and so the other five of them are in London, Berlin, Chicago and Tokyo and Boston. Those are all amazing cities, and I am currently training to run a marathon this fall in one of those cities. If my training goes well, I think I may be able to take a really cool, long run in Berlin, Germany. That's the plan. I'm training for it right now. So right now I'm feeling pretty optimistic.