Moving Running Forward: AAPI Member Spotlights
New York Chinatown Mini-Marathon, 1977. Photographs taken by Emile Bocian, Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) Collection
A couple of years ago, I found out about a road race that was held in Chinatown. The photos I had seen were in black and white. I have since found that this race was held in 1977. Dubbed a mini-marathon this race was only 7 miles. The Museum of Chinese in America has some information on the race, but that information is limited. It reports the race was held on August 28, 1977 and it appeared from photos taken that the race started and finished on Mott Street, and “saw runners running across the Manhattan Bridge”. The headliner appeared to be the then 67-year-old runner Chan-Ling Wang, who Emile Bocian (the photographer who documented the race), declared “China’s most famous marathon runner”. I never heard of Chan-Ling Wang and the thought of a road race in New York’s Chinatown with all Chinese runners bewildered me.
I don’t remember seeing any Asian runners while I was a child or knowing of any famous Asian runners, even though back in the 70’s (when that Chinatown Mini-Marathon was held) I was in Chinatown every weekend being put through the torture that is Chinese school. Yet there must have been these runners. I looked to China’s participation in the Olympics as a possible guide to famous runners I may have overlooked, but China’s history with the Olympics is relatively short with participation in the summer Olympics only beginning in 1984 and none of the medals they won that year were for track and field events. I’m sure there are famous Asian runners, but they never pierced the American zeitgeist.
May is Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. This May I wanted our stories to be told. I wanted the stories of the Asian American Pacific Islander runners of PPTC to be told, so that we would not be overlooked. The following are spotlights on a few of our AAPI members.
Junko Matsuura (she/her)
Junko joined PPTC in 2018 and was awarded PPTC’s Female Masters Runner of the Year award at Awards Night last month. Junko is a Japanese-American immigrant who is a freelance designer. Other than running, Junko enjoys singing karaoke.
When you were a child what was your perception of running? Did anyone in your family run? Did you have any running role models who were Asian or any Asian athletic role models as a child?
I was pretty fast for short distances in my childhood, and wanted to get faster and faster, but I didn’t achieve the dream. Athletics was too competitive for me mentally & physically.
How did you get into running?
Ever since I moved to NY, I wanted to run NYCM because my brother ran it. After many years, a friend of mine recommended I join NYRR to qualify for entry. So I did in 2014 and ran the NYCM in 2015. Since then I’ve run the NYCM every year.
What did your family think when you first got into running?
Nothing particularly. My mother said “you really like running!?!!”
What does your family think about your running now?
They think it’s pretty impressive
How do you feel as an Asian-American running in New York City? Do you feel safe?
I feel ok. I’m pretty conscious when things are irregular in my surroundings. But you never know what could happen. I try not to be too fearful when I run.
Why did you join PPTC?
I always run in Prospect Park, and was searching for speed training, so I joined PPTC.
What is your favorite club event/activity?
I’m ashamed that I don’t really attend any of the club events, since my life is pretty busy. But I could follow the MTG program, which helped me a lot. So I say MTG!
Junko running the 2021 TCS NYC Marathon, Photo Credit: Alexander Cohn
What distance do you most enjoy running/racing? Why?
4miles. I got used to running this distance because of NYRR’s 9+1 program, and it seems my times have improved. I like marathoning, but I have not been as successful at that distance. I always slow down at the end with cramps. Even half-marathons give me cramps at the end! A good running friend of mine suggested I quit running marathons and race on the track. But I’ll stick to marathoning until I succeed! Ha!
Do you have any specific running goals right now?
3:10-15 for marathon
What is your favorite running memory?
When I hit my goal at the NYCM in 2019, I was crying so much, and a volunteer held me tight and congratulated me a lot without asking me anything.
[Editor’s note: Junko ran her fastest NYCM in 2019 with a time of 3:20:17]
Junko at the 2022 RBC Brooklyn Half
Jordin running the August 14, 2019 Al Goldstein Speed Series
Jordin at the 2021 Ted Corbitt 15K
Jordin Isip (he/him)
Jordin has been a member of PPTC since 2018. He is an artist and an educator. Outside of running, Jordin enjoys going to shows (art and music). But does Jordin enjoy running? If you follow Jordin on Instagram or Strava, then you know that he titles his runs “I Hate Running” followed by a run count. He also tags them with #ihaterunning2018. Jordin started titling and counting with his first run in April 2018, which explains why the hashtag he uses ends in 2018. . This title and hashtag came about when Jordin was training for the Kenny Dolan 5K, and was hoping to finish in under 25 minutes and follow through with some AGSS races. He knew that if he counted his runs then it would trigger some part of his obsessive nature. But does Jordin really hate running?
What is your ethnicity? Are you an immigrant or a child of immigrants? Second generation? Third (or more) generation American?
Second generation American. My dad was born here, both of his parents are from the Philippines, emigrated here in 1925, settled in Flushing. My mom is from the Philippines: she is half-Filipino, half-German (her mom is German, from Berlin). I grew up in Queens.
When you were a child what was your perception of running? Did anyone in your family run? Did you have any running role models who were Asian or any Asian athletic role models as a child?
I was the fastest kid on the block, in school, on my youth soccer and little league baseball teams. My older brother was on his high school (Glen Cove, LI) track team but I was oblivious to running as an organized sport. I was on my high school (Benjamin Cardozo, Queens) soccer team for one season, 10th grade. It never occurred to me to try out for the track team. No Asian role models in running or any sports, were there any? Bruce Lee.
How did you get into running?
I wanted to dedicate myself to something that I didn’t enjoy doing.
How do you feel as an Asian-American running in New York City? Do you feel safe?
Generally, not any less safe than walking around. I’ve had three negative experiences since the start of the pandemic: I was sucker punched in the face as I was walking down Cortelyou Rd. in the middle of the afternoon; an empty forty was thrown towards me during a Sunday group run, the bottle smashed against the base of a wall, spraying my legs with glass shards causing a tiny bit of bleeding. I suggested to everyone with me that it was probably unintentional, didn’t see me coming; in the city, a guy walking towards me shoulder checked me as we were passing each other. None of them said anything to me so I don’t know what their reasons were.
Why did you join PPTC?
I wanted to learn how to run more efficiently, faster and longer. When I started running on my own that spring, I was just doing a loop of the park but I had no idea what to do except try to run it faster, total novice. The first thing I did after joining was sign up for Speed Training with Tony and Charlene. They’re great, I learned so much from them and I continued doing every session up through and after the pandemic.
What is your favorite club event/activity?
I like the early morning group runs on Saturdays and Sundays, 10-12+ miles, taking different routes around Brooklyn and/or over the bridges into the city and back. It’s fun to explore different neighborhoods, see the sights, and of course, everyone on PPTC is chill, super nice. I enjoy volunteering, and all the other events and activities too.
What distance do you most enjoy running/racing? Why?
I guess I like those leisurely 10-12 mile runs. Racing, I’m not sure, 5ks are kinda painful. I just ran my first half in January (Lebow) and did 3 more since, those are alright. Maybe the 10-miler/15ks? The one-milers are fun and I finally broke 6 min. I would love to race a shorter distance all out sprint like in those elementary and junior high PE 50-yard dashes. Maybe a 100 or 200; a relay race would be fun.
Do you have any specific running goals right now?
I’m injured right now, I pulled my calf in the Bklyn Half, and I also have a glute issue so my main and only goal is to get healthy so I can run again. It’s pretty depressing to be sidelined. Before that I was hoping to PR a 5k during the AGSS.
What is your favorite running memory?
When I was 15, I was sprinting as fast as I could from Penn Station down the middle of 33rd St, and I heard, “Hey you! Stop!” but I kept running, and again, “You! Stop! Stop!” Kept running but glanced back over my shoulder to see who was yelling at me and realized it’s a cop chasing me so I stopped and he shouts, “Put your hands up.” He catches up to me, out of breath, hand on holster, and says, “Why are you running? I shrug my shoulders and reply, “I’m just going to Grand Central to buy Clash/Who tickets for Shea Stadium, I thought they were going on sale at Penn Station.” After a pause and determining that I’m not lying, he says, “Go on, get outta here.”
Leilani after the finish line of the 2021 TCS NYC Marathon receiving her finisher’s cape from Will Ngo (he/him)
Leilani Pathak (she/her)
Leilani joined PPTC in 2021. She is a resident physician in her last year at Brookdale Hospital. Outside of running, Leilani enjoys reading, baking, climbing, playing music, and even studying. If you were at the May general membership meeting, you may have gotten to sample Leilani’s baking skills. Her chocolate chip coconut macaroon won the cookie bake-off.
What is your ethnicity? Are you an immigrant or a child of immigrants? Second generation? Third (or more) generation American?
I’m Filapina-American. When I check the boxes I always check pacific islander. Daughter of immigrants from the Philippines – 1st generation American
When you were a child what was your perception of running? Did anyone in your family run? Did you have any running role models who were Asian or any Asian athletic role models as a child?
I had no idea people ran for sport/fun until I saw my first Olympic games back when I was in grade school. No one in my family even thought about running. I didn't know of any Asian runners growing up and even now I'm a bit naive about pro runners’ stats.
How did you get into running?
I saw my friend running when I was in high-school and when I asked him why he told me it was for his health. I thought that was so bizarre. But then I thought, “hey I want to be healthy too”, so I started running in my sophomore year.
What did your family think when you first got into running?
My mom likewise thought it was bizarre but she joined me a month later. My dad would bike next to me because he didn't want me running alone at night. Now both of them run as their favorite exercise
What does your family think about your running now?
They are really proud that I've stuck with it after all these years. Every time I come home from a run they ask how many miles I went for. Whether it is one mile or a marathon they always respond very excitedly, "Wow! Very good! That's amazing mahal!” (“mahal” means love in tagalog).
Leilani and Mara Karamitopoulos after the finish of the 2021 TCS NYC Marathon
How do you feel as an Asian-American running in New York City? Do you feel safe?
I'm always worried about crime and being a victim of crime. I always run defensively such as only running in public places, and if I ever see suspicious activity I run the opposite direction. I never really feel safe and I always have my guard up. But I don't let it stop me from running, I'm aware but I'm not paralyzed.
Why did you join PPTC?
I'm pretty social and it doesn't get better than PPTC. PPTC is the best running group in the world as far as I'm concerned. Fight me :)
What is your favorite club event/activity?
Anything connected to food. Love the weekend runs because I love running long runs with good company. I also love the pub runs after working all day letting loose with a loop run around the park and a beer. It just doesn't get any better. I also try to go to every general meeting because there's always some interesting topic and it's the only time I ever eat pizza so I really, really look forward to them.
What distance do you most enjoy running/racing? Why?
I like all distances. That may sound weird, but I like how each distances tests a different part of your running repertoire like strength, endurance, grit, or cardiovascular health. Haha, but I do enjoy a fast 5K.
Do you have any specific running goals right now?
I ran my first marathon last year. I really like how it made me feel going through the whole training cycle…. I plan on doing a fall marathon every year as a lifetime goal
What is your favorite running memory?
Oh man this one is hard. I met one of my best friends on my high school cross-country team so that's a hard one to beat. But running the NYC with Mara [Karamitopoulos] (a fellow PPTC member) is also way up there. I think just being able to run and being proud of my body just brings me so much joy.
Koushik Dasika (he/him)
Koushik joined PPTC in 2019. He enjoys cooking and baking and the Social Committee’s events that combine food and running.
What do you do for a living?
I am a software engineer who primarily focuses on backend and infrastructure systems. I currently work for GoodBuy Gear, an online marketplace for quality checked, secondhand and open box baby, toddler and kid gear. I have previously worked in ecommerce, brand marketing, sports betting, and luxury travel industries.
What is your ethnicity? Are you an immigrant or a child of immigrants? Second generation? Third (or more) generation American?
I am an Indian American. I was born in the city of Secunderabad in the Indian state known as Telangana. My father immigrated to the United States by himself in 1989. He hopped on the plane knowing almost no one here, without a job lined up, and with only $400 in his pocket.
My mother and I joined my father in Minneapolis for a short stint in 1990. We returned to India after 6 months and stayed there for 1 year. We then joined my father in New Jersey in 1992 just after my 3rd birthday. I moved to Brooklyn from New Jersey in 2013.
When you were a child what was your perception of running? Did anyone in your family run? Did you have any running role models who were Asian or any Asian athletic role models as a child?
In the 1990s, the Indian community that we were in was composed of poor, but highly educated individuals coming to the United States to make their fortune and provide their families with a higher standard of living. India was only two generations removed from colonialism, so it was still trying to improve its standard of living and heal from generational trauma.
My father grew up moving frequently between multiple rural villages due to his father’s profession as a civil engineer. In that era and in that state, there was a college entrance test that high school students took in their 11th and 12th grades that determined if they were going to college or not. There were only 10,000 college spots for over a million test takers. The wealth inequality was so great that each financial class was separated by multiple orders of magnitude so class mobility was not a thing. As such, competition was fierce because your entire life trajectory was determined by your placement in this exam as a ticket out of poverty.
Fast forward to when I was growing up: Almost every one of my parent’s generation in the Indian community at the time had a similar story of studying at elite Indian schools, and then eventually moving to the US. They came with no safety net and no money. They had nothing but their education and wits. As such, everything when I was growing up was about survival and achieving stability. College admissions was the Olympics in our community. Everything was about acing the SATs, going to an Ivy League college, and becoming a doctor/lawyer/engineer. People who got into elite colleges or landed elite jobs were held up as role models.
Koushik just off the Manhattan Bridge at the 2022 NYC Half, Photo Credit: Hans Zhong
There was no real importance given to sports growing up. None of the adults did any sports or did any rigorous exercise. For my peers, any sports activity was only allowed if it boosted your college application. So a few of my friends did track in our school only for their college applications. I did taekwondo through high school. Running, especially as we enjoy it in this club, was not even on my radar until I was in college. The concept that people could run over 10 miles recreationally was unfathomable to me.
How did you get into running?
After my freshman 15, I realized I was extremely sedentary and needed to do some physical activity. I just put on some shows and ran 1-2 miles around the neighborhood a few times a week. I realized I liked it and eventually over time, I lost the weight and extended my distance to 10ks. I stopped doing this when I graduated college and started working.
Fast forward 5 years to 2017, I was hanging out with some friends who then tricked me into signing up for a half-marathon. I had no idea what it took to train for a half marathon or what training for long distance running entailed. I just put on shoes and would run 1-2 loops of Prospect Park a few times a week. I once did 3 ENTIRE loops about 3 weeks before the race to see if I would survive. The race day came, I survived, and good times were had.
The same friends got me to sign up for the Al Goldstein Speed Series in 2018. I ran the 5Ks and my time improved a little over the course of the series, but not a lot. That was the first time the thought of “Hmm, what would it take for me to improve at running?” popped into my head. I joined NYRR’s Group Training in July 2018, loved it, and the rest is history.
What did your family think when you first got into running?
I had some major health issues in 2016. While I was physically better after 6 months, I was mentally affected by the trauma so I was just staying inside all the time through 2017.
In 2018, my mom was surprised but super proud that I was getting out of the house and that I was doing something healthy. It was a big change from the previous 2 years. My dad was also happy. They both were super worried I would overdo it and hurt my knees permanently.
What does your family think about your running now?
My parent’s opinions have not changed that much. They are happy I’m doing an activity to stay healthy. They think I should stop doing marathons, so that I don't permanently hurt myself.
How do you feel as an Asian-American running in New York City? Do you feel safe?
I feel safe running in New York City. It is a very diverse city with people from all over the world, so I do not get treated like an “Other” by strangers when I’m out running. Every major road has lights, there are people out at all hours, and there are many bodegas for supplies if you need them. As many of my Strava friends know, I am a night shift runner who frequently clocks in my runs at night. I have had runs that I’ve started at 10 or 11pm. I finished one of my 18-mile runs at midnight this past winter.
It's actually the rest of the country that I don’t feel as safe in. I am a single brown man living in a post 9/11 United States. Traveling to races is actually hard for me. I get randomly selected for extra screenings almost every time I fly to a destination race. When I travel to other parts of the country, I research about that place’s political leanings, how many immigrants live in that area, and calculate how often I am alone. As such, I tend to stick to urban areas. Even with all these precautions, I still have had incidents where I have been treated differently. There are some club members who have a friendly wager to race in all the states of the country. This is a challenge that I can’t do on a whim. PPTC does a great job coordinating the big races, but there is an open opportunity for facilitating group travel to less popular races.
Why did you join PPTC?
I lived right by the Brooklyn library for a few years so I was running in the park every day. I ran with a really nice PPTC member (Christian Urena (he/him)) in one of the 2018 AGSSS races who really sold the club. I also happened to run with some club members in the 2019 Brooklyn Half and I liked their vibe. After the 2019 Brooklyn Half, I was preparing to run my first 2 marathons so I wanted the support of a big club.
What is your favorite club event/activity?
Social Committee’s Pub Runs are hands down my favorite events. The food destination runs are my second most favorite.
What distance do you most enjoy running/racing? Why?
I like running half marathons. It takes me about 3-4 miles to settle into any run. Once I settle in, it’s fun to manage my energy and effort level while running.
Marathons take a lot of commitment. I’m also a bigger runner, and I haven’t figured out how to avoid hitting the wall and bonking hard.
I like 10Ks a lot because they are fast races, but I spend the first half of the race just warming up and settling in.
Do you have any specific running goals right now?
I am spending Summer 2022 working on speed, strength, and getting more fit. I want to improve in every AGSS race this summer. I hope to PR my 5K time by the end of the summer.
I am running the 2022 NYC Marathon in the fall.
What is your favorite running memory?
My favorite running memory was the 2019 NYC Marathon. I trained the entire summer with my friends. We would wake up early every Saturday morning, run different sections of the race, and then get brunch when we were done. Race day was just perfect. The energy of the city coming out to cheer was amazing. I saw so many of my running friends either running the race or cheering on the sides. It was also the second big race that I ran wearing my PPTC gear, so getting the club support was super awesome.
“As such, everything when I was growing up was about survival and achieving stability. College admissions was the Olympics in our community. ”
Koushik running along Flatbush during the 2022 Brooklyn Marathon
“There are some club members who have a friendly wager to race in all the states of the country. This is a challenge that I can’t do on a whim.”
Koushik on Ocean Parkway at the 2022 Brooklyn Half
Interviewees: Junko Matsuura, Jordin Isip, Leilani Pathak, and Koushik Dasika
Introduction and Interview by: Linda S. Chan (she/her)
Photos of interviewees: provided by interviewees
Edited by: Linda S. Chan
Produced by: Linda S. Chan
PPTC is a diverse and supportive team. We want to celebrate the diversity of our club and membership. We welcome and encourage everyone to share their stories with us.