NEW YORK, NY. (THECOUNT) — Rachel Apa, 24, died after collapsing during her first New York City Marathon on Sunday, about two miles from the finish line. In the final miles of the race, Apa sent her father two text messages: “Ow” and “Ow, Ow.” Her father, Steve Apa, was tracking her progress through the marathon app when the messages arrived at approximately the 18-mile and 19-mile marks.
Steve texted his daughter back at the 23-mile mark, writing, “Final stretch.” He never received a response.
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Apa collapsed approximately two miles from the finish. A hospital social worker who was watching the race rushed to help, joined by Apa’s fiancée. The two performed CPR, but they were unable to save her, according to the Times.
Apa’s mother, Michelle, had recorded video of her daughter passing the 14-mile mark. In the footage, Apa appeared to be smiling and “beaming,” the report said.
Apa was running with the Parkinson’s Champions team to honor her grandfather, who died from Parkinson’s disease in 2022. She had trained for months for the 26.2-mile race. Her father described her as being in “perfect health, perfect shape.”
A former field hockey player at Bucknell University, Apa was competing in her first marathon as part of the team honoring her grandfather’s memory.
The New York City Marathon course crosses all five boroughs before finishing in Manhattan’s Central Park. Apa collapsed roughly two miles before the finish, although the precise location of her collapse was not provided in the report.
The marathon’s finish area is in Central Park, in Manhattan, New York County, within the New York City metropolitan area. The map identifies the general finish area, not the location where Apa collapsed.
Google Maps: Central Park, Manhattan (general marathon finish area)
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