Apr 13, 2007 Doug Kurtis Column: Merion Knight By Doug Kurtis :: Views- 328

Merion Knight was near the top of her class in almost every 65 to 69 age group category for Michigan runners. Now at 70 she will dominate the field. That’s spectacular for a black woman who is a survivor of breast cancer.

Knight has been a native Detroiter since 1956. She grew up on a small farm in Nettleton, Mississippi, graduated high school and attended Rust College. She began work as an information operator for Michigan Bell in 1959 and retired from what was Ameritech.

Knight recalls that she started running after 1979. “I had a supervisor by the name of Kitty Barry who was Ms. Body Build for southeast Michigan. She needed someone to exercise with her. After working hours we started out running one mile every other day on the streets of Allen Park. After transferring to another location within the company I continued to run. My first race was Emily & Pooh’s fun run.”

Knight has learned that running is a positive way to fight depression, keep your weight down and meet great friends. “I would say to older women like me, “do something”. Maybe you can’t run, but you can walk, do floor exercise or go to the gym for a variety of things you can do. Just don’t injure yourself.”

Since 1995, Knight has been a member of the Motor City Striders. She enjoys going to their races because of the likelihood of seeing other members there. The Club also gave her the opportunity to run the 1997 World Veteran track meet in Durban, South Africa with friend Marilyn Morehead. She placed 4th in the world in the 400m and 800m. She also competed in the 2001 Worlds in Sidney, Australia with fellow Strider teammate Chris Swanson.

She doesn’t have a running partner. “I find that most runners run too much. They want to run every day. I want to run every other day and different distances. On the off days, do other exercises, something light. If I’m training for a marathon, I will pull my training schedule from Runner’s World Magazine and follow it almost to a T.”

Knight has run over eighty marathons, including the Boston Marathon twice. At her first Boston Marathon, her son and daughter from Atlanta, GA surprised her at the finish line with a dozen roses.

The Detroit Free Press Marathon is her favorite marathon. She didn’t like the noon start at Boston. Knight considers the St. George Marathon to be the most beautiful of all the marathons she has run because of the many colors throughout the mountains.

In August of 1997 she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her doctor wanted to do surgery in September. She postponed it until the day after the Free Press Marathon because she had trained too hard to miss the run.

The Race for the Cure is a very special race for Knight. Maureen Meldrum, race chairperson for the Race for the Cure had this to say about her. "We just love Merion! She is symbolic of everything the Komen Race Series stands for-- a community celebration of survivorship, the importance of healthy behaviors, one person making a difference and encouraging thousands more to do the same. She is a fantastic example of so many good things about metro Detroit. This year, after saying yes every time we've asked her over the years to share her personal story as a survivor and athlete, Merion stepped up her commitment and joined the race planning committee.”

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