Whereas on a run on Dec. 13 in preparation for the January Chevron Houston Marathon, Houston runner Lilia Vazquez was killed in a hit-and-run. A month later, the working neighborhood plans to honour Vazquez, who was 61, at Sunday’s Houston Marathon, in response to ABC13 Information.
Vazquez was set to take part within the Houston race as a neighborhood elite runner. Alongside their very own official bib, runners are invited to put on a devoted bib with Vazquez’s identify and film in the course of the race. “I run in honour of Lilia Vazquez,” the bib reads. “August 24, 1963 – December 13, 2024.”
Different members of the native Houston neighborhood are inspired to take part by cheering. The honorary occasion is organized by Vazquez’s daughters, Mariana and Cecilia.
“My mother needs to be right here,” Mariana mentioned. “She needs to be doing this. If she will be able to’t be right here, then it simply is sensible that her household and associates [are here]. I need her image all over the place, on the race observe. People who find themselves cheering for her are going to have a bib or one thing along with her identify.”
An lively member of the working neighborhood
In 2024 alone, Vazquez accomplished three marathons: the Chevron Houston Marathon, Boston Marathon and Telcel Mexico Metropolis Marathon. At Houston, she clocked 3:42:01 and claimed second place within the feminine 60-64 age group. She skilled with the Houston Striders working group.
“She had a pure reward for working. She’s a mentor to a variety of us, she’s a pillar within the working neighborhood, and tons of of individuals love this girl,” Brenda Gonzalez, one in every of Vazquez’s associates, advised media. Since December, shut family and friends have labored with the Houston Marathon to prepare the tribute to the late runner’s reminiscence.
Bringing consideration to the crime
Vazquez’s daughters hope the occasion will elevate consciousness for the runner and her tragic demise, doubtlessly uncovering extra details about the crime. The avid runner had been jogging close to her dwelling in Houston, earlier than she was hit by what authorities consider was a truck; the driving force of the automobile didn’t cease, and Vazquez was pronounced lifeless on the scene. Authorities are nonetheless trying to find the driving force concerned. Surveillance movies present Vazquez on her closing run, simply moments earlier than her demise.