Cambridge Rindge and Latin School (CRLS) shone brightly at the FOCA Cambridge CityRun/Walk 5k and Andrea Harvey Memorial Walk on April 12th.  From student and parent volunteers to athletes and coaches, the race highlighted the important part CRLS plays in the Cambridge community and we are so grateful to everyone who participated in making it such a great event.

CRLS Alum (varsity volleyball player extraordinaire) and physical therapist at Bay State Physical Therapy, Nestor Canenguez Soto, started off the festivities with a dynamic group warm up and stretch to get everyone prepared for the race. Track & Field Coach Jamahl Prince addressed the runners and reviewed the race course after welcoming comments from Cambridge Vice Mayor Burhan Azeem highlighting the significance of this race. John and Sheila Ryder, our veteran masters of ceremony and family to Paul Ryder (the godfather of CityRun), officiated this year’s race on a beautiful and clear Sunday morning. Over 450 racers and walkers enlivened the trails around Fresh Pond’s lush and beautiful reservation.  CRLS Alum Paulino Guevara Mateo won for the third year in a row in just 15:13.  Huge congratulations also go to CRLS seniors Min-Jae Kuo and Fiona Litman, Lacrosse Coach Amory Rowe and CRLS Alum parent Tom Akbari, all of whom won their age groups.

The course was brought to life by CRLS student volunteers who showed up to delineate the path and cheer on the runners.  Many thanks to all the volunteers and the teams who came out in force, including Boys and Girls’ Volleyball, Softball (shout out to Coach Bridget O’Brien for showing up with her team), Baseball,Track & Field, Rowing, Orienteering, Lacrosse and Boys’ Tennis–we could not do this without your help and your enthusiasm is a great energizer for the runners.  Many thanks also to the parent volunteers who helped us manage the chaos and the fun, particularly Rachel Henke and Jocelyn Maslan who directed volunteers and the FOCA Board who showed up by 6:30am to make this day possible: prez extraordinaire Maija Pratt Rojas, food sponsorship queen Saira Yunus, finance whizz Sue Swalley, earliest riser Sara Ontiveros, master DJ  Nate Emerton, sign sage Christina Lively, FOCA tent maven Karen Shakman, and t-shirt luminary Yunjie Peng! 

This was the race’s 38th year and FOCA raised over $18,000 for athletic team grants and student scholarships.  At a school like ours, where there is no fee for participating in sports, these grants help our 40+ athletic teams elevate their training with support for special equipment or specialized training.  We hope you will all join us on April 4 2027 for the fun and challenge of the 39th annual FOCA Cambridge CityRun/Walk.

Hyo-Jin Kim and Liza Tague

Click on these links to view race results, the list of winners by age group, and photos of the event.