50th Straight NYC Marathon: Dave Obelkevich, 83, Eyes Record

Dave Obelkevich, 83, is preparing to run his 50th consecutive New York City Marathon, a streak ABC News describes as a record in a video interview the network aired Oct. 30, 2026. ABC News anchor Linsey Davis spoke with Obelkevich ahead of the race, asking why the annual run has become a fixture for him and his family, according to the ABC News segment.

What is Dave Obelkevich attempting this week?

Obelkevich is set to toe the starting line for his 50th straight finish of the New York City Marathon, per ABC News. The network's on-air description calls the streak a record, though the segment does not name a governing body or race organizer that has formally certified it. ABC News frames the run as a milestone worth marking on its own, built entry by entry over five decades of racing rather than a single headline performance.

The interview, conducted by Linsey Davis for ABC News Live, runs just over four minutes and was published the day before the broadcast network's wider marathon-week coverage. It sits alongside other ABC News Live segments posted the same week, including pieces on midterm election coverage and a Halloween weather outlook, placing the Obelkevich interview inside the network's regular news rotation rather than as a standalone feature.

How did ABC News build the story around his streak?

The timeline of ABC's coverage is narrow but specific. The network posted the segment, titled "Runner looks forward to his 50th straight NYC marathon," on Oct. 30, 2026, the day before this year's race week moves into its final stretch. Davis's questions, according to the video description, focused on two things: the scale of the 50-race run and the reason Obelkevich keeps showing up every year.

ABC News does not specify in the segment description when Obelkevich's streak began, what his finishing times have looked like over the decades, or how race officials track or verify consecutive-year participation. Those gaps matter for readers trying to size up the claim. A streak of 50 consecutive New York City Marathons implies five decades of unbroken participation, but that figure is an inference from the stated count, not a detail ABC News confirmed with a start date in the published material.

Why does Obelkevich call it a family tradition?

The ABC News description states plainly that the marathon has become "a tradition for him and his family," without elaborating on specific family members, past race-day rituals, or how many relatives take part. No direct quote from Obelkevich appears in the material made available with the segment, so this report does not attribute specific language to him beyond the outlet's own framing.

That framing puts Obelkevich in a small category of runners nationally who return to the same marathon annually for half a century. The New York City Marathon's organizer has not been quoted or cited in the ABC News material confirming record status, leaving the "record" characterization as the network's own description rather than an official designation.

What is still unclear about the streak?

Several basic facts are missing from the available reporting. The segment does not give Obelkevich's hometown, his occupation, or his finishing time in recent years. It does not say whether this year's race has already happened or is still ahead as of the Oct. 30 broadcast date, only that the interview took place "ahead of" the run. Readers looking for marathon-day results, an official certification of the streak, or additional family interviews will need to watch for follow-up coverage, since none of that appears in the sourced material.

What to watch

• Race-day outcome: Whether Obelkevich finishes his 50th straight New York City Marathon and how the result is reported.
• Official confirmation: Whether the New York City Marathon's organizing body addresses or certifies the streak as a record.
• Follow-up interviews: Whether ABC News or other outlets publish additional reporting with specifics on start date, times, or family participation.
• Broader streak-runner coverage: Whether other long-running marathon streakers nationally draw comparison coverage during this marathon cycle.

For now, the record stands as ABC News described it on air: an 83-year-old runner, a 50-race streak, and a family that treats marathon Sunday as an annual appointment. Watch the original ABC News interview for the full segment with Linsey Davis.