West Columbia woman finalist for Runner’s World cover contest

The searing pain in Elizabeth Gray’s muscles 25 miles into her first marathon was nothing compared to the three years of abuse she endured in her previous marriage.

At the 2012 Quintiles Marathon in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, Gray put the 13 police reports, the choking, the hair pulling and the nose breaking behind her, mile by mile.

“That whole last mile, I cried the entire time. All I could think about were all the horrendous things that happened to me. And when I saw the finish line, it was one of the best moments of my life,” Gray said. “I knew at that moment that God had a bigger plan for me to help other victims of domestic violence.”

The 43-year-old mother of two and West Columbia resident described this “breakthrough” running moment when entering Runner’s World magazine’s annual cover search contest.

The cover search seeks to recognize two inspiring runners – one male and one female – in the United States who are regular people doing amazing things.

Out of more than 1,000 applicants, Gray is a top 10 finalist.

The winners, who will be announced in early November, will appear on the December cover of Runner’s World. They will be selected by a panel of judges including Editor in Chief David Willey.

“I knew joining the contest would be a wonderful platform for what I run for, but I never thought I’d be a finalist,” Gray said.

Since completing her first marathon, she has made it her mission to run a marathon in all 50 states, raising awareness about domestic violence along the way, usually by wearing a sign on her back with the name of a domestic violence victim.

She started the online group Marathons Against Domestic Violence, which connects victims and their families to other survivors and advocates.

For Gray, running became a way to empower herself.

“The first year and a half after I left my husband, I was in a very dark place. Running helped me cope,” she said. Coupled with counseling, running “helped me overcome my depression.”

In 2012, Gray started speaking publicly about her experience, and she was named one of Sistercare’s Women of the Year in 2014. Sistercare is a nonprofit organization that provides services to domestic violence survivors and their children. It is also where Gray received counseling.

In 2015, she joined Gov. Nikki Haley’s Domestic Violence Task Force, which works to comprehensively address the cultural issues surrounding domestic violence in South Carolina.

Despite her grim past experiences, Gray often uses the hashtag #BeautifulLife on social media.

“If I never had the courage to take that first step to leave that relationship, to take that first step toward running a marathon, I would not have the beautiful life I have now,” she said.

Those steps have allowed her to run marathons in Pocatello, Idaho, where she received a swag bag full of potatoes (and finished in 6 hours and 9 minutes) to Anchorage, Alaska, where she says she was followed by a wolf for 20 minutes (“That will make you run faster!”).

This weekend she will run her 21st marathon in her 20th state, at the Sioux Falls Marathon in South Dakota.

Every marathon gives her a larger voice for domestic violence survivors, and for that, the pain of 26.2 miles isn’t so bad, she said.

“My muscles recover quickly.”

This story was originally published September 6, 2016 at 4:54 PM with the headline "West Columbia woman finalist for Runner’s World cover contest."