Broken Arm Leads to a Breakthrough Race

An injury can be a major setback for distance runners, but Dolly Ginter actually benefited from a broken left arm Sunday.

The Huntington Beach resident placed seventh in the women’s 5K at the Orange County Race for the Cure in Newport Beach. Ginter finished the three-mile course in 17 minutes 49 seconds, defeating several elite competitors, including defending champion and former U.S. Olympian Ruth Wysocki, 43, who was 10th in 18:07.

“I was hoping to crack the top 10, probably ninth or 10th,” said Ginter. “I’ve never really focused on this 5K, but I broke my arm three weeks ago, so I’m pretty rested. I came in with fresh legs and it made a big difference.”

Ginter, 37, who broke her forearm in a mountain biking accident, is an accomplished triathlete. She competed in the world long-course triathlon championships in Nice, France in June, a month after winning the Kring & Brown Newport Beach Triathlon.

The arm injury has prevented Ginter from swimming, but she still kept herself in competitive shape.

“She’s in great shape and running well,” said Kelly Flathers of Huntington Beach, Ginter’s training partner with the Cal Coast Track Club. “She worked hard and was rested. Last year she didn’t rest and she hurt.”

Flathers, 29, was the second Orange County runner to cross the finish line, placing ninth in 17:53. Flathers, who finished 37th in the Olympic trials marathon in January, accomplished her main goal.

“I was focused on [beating Wysocki],” Flathers said. “She’s not at her top, obviously, so I thought with a little more dig, I could get her. To be able to compete, even at half her level, was a rush.”

Milena Glusac of Fallbrook won the race in 16:49. Glusac, 25, claimed the lead after 800 meters and won by 26 seconds over Nancy Tinari of Vancouver, B.C.

Glusac starred at Fallbrook High before competing at Oregon, where she spent five years but was plagued by injuries and illness. She led the first few laps of her 5,000-meter preliminary heat at the U.S. Olympic trials in July, before fading to 12th in 16:01.87.

“Unfortunately, I had a stress fracture [in my ankle] six weeks before the Olympic trials, so it set me back in my training a bit,” Glusac said. “But I went to the trials and competed and ran a really good time, so I couldn’t have asked for much more.”

Glusac also won the Inland Empire Race for the Cure last year and was the top U.S. female finisher at America’s Finest City Half Marathon in San Diego last summer (1:14.33).

“I’ve been injured and ill for the past four years, so I just wanted to come out and have a great race,” Glusac said.

Race organizers doubled the size of the starting area by opening two adjoining lanes. The wider starting line not only accommodated the estimated 27,000 participants, but gave the elite runners some options as well.

Wilhelm Gidabuday, 25, of Riverside won the coed 5K in 15:18. Kevin Broady, 38, of Brea was second in 15:32 and Danny Reed, 39, of Laguna Niguel was third in 15:42.