A marathon runner has revealed why she missed out on a competitor’s medal and wound up in the hospital instead, after passing out during a race.
Analiese Marquez, 26, is an avid runner who ran the Honolulu marathon in 2023 and has previously completed three half marathons. On December 8, 2024, she returned to Honolulu for the marathon, telling Newsweek she was “feeling great before the race.
Marquez, who resides in Seattle, worked with a running coach and did plenty of “long, intense training.” When it came to the morning of the marathon, she did all her usual preparations and stretches.
The Honolulu marathon begins at 5 a.m., before the temperature and humidity increase dramatically. It seemed to be going well, and Marquez was close to the end when she started to feel unwell.
I had a pace strategy to bring my marathon time to 3 hours and 45 minutes,” Marquez said. “I was proud that I was hitting them while still feeling great. I drank water and took a salt tablet at each water station, and I ate a gel or pack of gummies every 30 minutes.
“I started feeling slightly lightheaded at mile 22. That part of the race is all out in the sun, so when I went to a water station, I’d take two cups: one to drink, and one to pour on myself to cool down.During mile 24, as Marquez went up “the hardest part” of the marathon on Diamond Head, things got worse. It’s thought she passed out from heatstroke around that point, only to wake up in the medical tent shortly after.