By Paul Lomax
Special to DNAinfo
A celebration of green filled the streets of Washington Heights Sunday as thousands of runners took part in the 14th Annual Coogan's Salsa, Blues & Shamrocks 5K Race.
Serenaded by performers from more than 25 different genres and forms of music, including salsa, bagpipes, merengue, and even brass bands, more than 7,500 people ran the course.
Tesfaye Assefa-Duba, 28, of the Bronx, took the men's medal with a time of 14 minutes and 43 seconds. For the women, Betsy Burke, 27, covered the 3.1-mile course in 16 minutes and 43 seconds.
"Today signifies 14 years of growth in this community, " said race founder and owner of Coogan's restaurant, Peter Walsh, 65.
"We began this race ...to take back the streets from the drug dealers and the gangs and, in the end, this race has won."
Children joined in on the fun, too. There were special races for children between the ages of two and 12. Local firefighters from Ladder 45 and NYPD police officers from the 33rd and 34th precincts were on hand to award the youngsters Olympic style medals.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth Almodvar, 27, competed for the first time.
"I finished in just over 27 minutes," she said. "It was awesome. I'll definitely do it again next year. The course is a lot of fun."
Proceeds from this year's events will go to the newly opened USA Track and Field Hall of Fame in the Armory Track and Field Center in Washington Heights.
