"Speedy Beatie"
Orthodox Jewish Mother
of 5 wins Miami Marathon!
American-Israeli
Bracha "Beatie" Deutsch, 30, an Orthodox Jewish mother
of five young children, finished with a time of 1:16:4 to win in the women's
category in the half marathon at the 18th annual Life Time Miami Marathon
and Half-Marathon event on Sunday, February 9, [Erev Tu b'Shvat].
 The
Miami Herald also reported that this year, for the first time, the Miami
Marathon offered kosher-certified meals for athletes at the finish line.
Deutsch later wrote
on Facebook, "Thank you Hashem for giving me the opportunity to stand
on the podium today at the Miami Marathon and proudly represent Israel
and the Jewish people."
It was Deutsch's
first race in the United States. She is working to qualify to represent
Israel in the marathon at the Tokyo Olympics this summer. That race currently
is scheduled for a Saturday, however, and the Sabbath-observing Deutsch
would be unable to compete even if she can reach the Olympic qualifying
time.
***********
The
30-year-old native of Passaic-New Jersey made aliyah in 2009, making her
home in the ultra-Orthodox Har Nof neighborhood of Jerusalem.
"Speedy Beatie"
only began running in 2015 as a desperate move to get back into shape
after having four children in six years. In the spirit of modesty, she
always wears a head covering, skirt and long-sleeve shirt when she runs.
The 1.5 m. (4'11")
Deutsch ran her first marathon in 2015, the full 42.195 km. in Tel Aviv,
and finished a surprising sixth place with a time of 3:27:26. A year later,
she ran the Tel Aviv Marathon again, but this time she was seven months
pregnant. If the running world hadn't noticed Deutsch after 2016, they
definitely did following her second full marathon, when she finished in
4:08.16 - seven weeks before giving birth.
The first-placed
Israeli woman at the 2018 Jerusalem Marathon (in 3:09:50, setting a course
record for Israeli female runners), Deutsch followed with more golds that
year in Beit She'an (half-marathon in 1:19:53), Tiberias (full marathon
in 2:42.18, the fifth best result of all time for female Israeli runners)
and the January 2019 half-marathon in Tel Aviv, where she was feted as
a national hero and treated as a true blue-and-white celebrity. In her
first international test, Deutsch took first place with a 1:17.34 time
in the May 2019 half-marathon in Riga, Latvia, reportedly becoming the
first ultra-Orthodox woman to win an international athletic competition.
Not only has Deutsch
opened the eyes of the Israeli public with her running, but she is a role
model for many observant women from around the world. Deutsch - who through
her running raises awareness for Beit Daniella, a rehabilitation facility
for adolescents with psychiatric disorders - still hopes to represent
Israel at next summer's Olympics, and has broken down many barriers as
she continues to inspire women and men to go for the gold in every facet
of life.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Compiled by Yerachmiel Tilles primarily from an article
by Joshua Halickman, posted on //Jpost.com on 9/28/19; with inserted
updates about the Miami event this week (2/9/20) from //TimesofIsrael.com
and from Mrs. Deutsch's Facebook, which is also the source of her victory
photo (from an earlier event).
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