Blog

Jul 12, 2023

The Gym Bag: Ultramarathoner Chris Calimano strikes again; Wagner College men’s X

Chris Calimano, right, poses at the finish line of the Eastern States with his wife Colleen, and sons Thomas (6) and George (3). The youngest one is holding his nose because Calimano said he was

Chris Calimano, right, poses at the finish line of the Eastern States with his wife Colleen, and sons Thomas (6) and George (3). The youngest one is holding his nose because Calimano said he was "smelly" after the race. (Photo courtesy of Chris Calimano)

Staten Island Athletic Club ultramarathoner Chris Calimano doesn’t fear anything.

That’s what happens when you trek to all parts of the world to compete in some outlandish racing events. Marathons, 100-milers, 50-milers, running up and down mountains, competing in the extreme heat and cold. You name it, Calimano has done it.

That’s why last week’s Eastern States 100 Miler in the heart of Pennsylvania was no big deal for Calimano, even though the race is considered one of the toughest in the world.

Runners World magazine (from Aug 2022) listed Eastern States as one of the world’s toughest races because of the super technical terrain,” said the 42-year-old Calimano, who finished the race in 34 hours, 20 minutes.

“All the pain from running and climbing for 34 hours disappears when you see your family waiting for you at the finish line,” said the Oakwood resident, who celebrated his birthday the day he completed the race.

The event consists of a 21,000-foot elevation gain over 103 miles across the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon County and starts and ends in Little Pine State Park.

It is the third leg of the Pennsylvania Mountain Triple Crown, which also consisted of the Hyner 50K in April and the Worlds End 100K in June.

It’s the second time Calimano completed the Pennsylvania Mountain Triple Crown with the first coming in 2017.

Wagner College’s X-C team tabbed NEC favorites

For the third consecutive year, the Wagner College men’s cross country team has earned the top spot in the Northeast Conference (NEC) preseason poll, the league office announced.

The Seahawks were voted unanimous favorites to repeat as conference champions, looking to win their fourth title in the last five seasons. After Wagner, CCSU is predicted to finish second while Merrimack claimed third to round out the top three spots.

Stonehill, LIU, Saint Francis U, Sacred Heart, newcomer Le Moyne, and FDU completed the bottom portion of the 2023 coaches’ poll.

The Green & White captured their third NEC Cross Country title at last year’s Conference Championships in Tyrone, PA, where the Seahawks scored 37 total points, defeating the defending champions CCSU by eight points. Scorers from the Green & White championship race who are returning include graduate student Dominic Palermo, senior Anthony Bentivegna, and junior Justin Morris and senior Paul Siconolfi, all Island products.

The Seahawks will begin their 2023 campaign as they travel to Stony Brook on Saturday, September 2nd, for the Stony Brook Invite.

Do you have any good sports news? Send it our way

The Gym Bag publishes on Wednesdays on the web and will appear in the Staten Island Advance shortly after. This is where we will feature short stories, tidbits and morsels about college players and teams and adult sports news.

You can send us interesting information about anyone or any team that falls into this category.

If you have any news or tidbits like that, please email the sports desk at [email protected] where we will evaluate the message and see if the content qualifies for our notebook.

NOTE: If you have any youth sports results to report, please email them to [email protected].

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. By browsing this site, we may share your information with our social media partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.