Beach sports – 24th Village Runner 4th of July 5K run/walk
Couple races to Village Runner 4th of July 5K titles
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More than 2,000 participants kicked off their Independence Day finishing the 24th Village Runner 4th of July 5K run/walk in Redondo Beach’s Riviera Village.
Juan Paredes and Valerie Sanchez, a boyfriend-girlfriend running couple from East Los Angele won the men’s and women’s divisions.
Paredes won his second consecutive title with a time of 15 minutes flat, flat holding off Stewart Harwell, 33, of Redondo Beach, who finished at 15:09. David Cardona, 25, of Torrance placed third at 15:40.
Sanchez, 27, posted the women’s winning time of 16:59, outpacing D’Ann Arthur, 30, of Redondo Beach (17:39) and Mary Ladnier, 20, of Hermosa Beach (17:42).
Prior to the race, two-time Olympic high jumper Jamie Nieto was presented with the 2017 Pathfinder Award by Jac Folkert, Area Director of Marketing and Community Outreach for UCLA Health.
Complete results available at villagerunner.com.