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Cal Calamia
Calamia stands before a graffiti-covered wall wearing a black t-shirt, orange shorts and a black wristwatch. A lime green jacket is slung over his shoulder and his arms are crossed over his chest. Black tattoos are visible on his forearms and legs.
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SportRunning

Cal Calamia is a non-binary transmasculine runner, sports activist, poet, and educator.[1] He[a] was born in 1996.[2] Calamia was the first winner of the non-binary division of the San Francisco Marathon and has been an advocate for transgender and non-binary runners since 2022.[3]

Running career and activism

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Calamia competed in cross country both in high school in Grayslake, Illinois and in college at Saint Louis University in Missouri.[4] He then began a gender transition and became an advocate for more visibility and inclusion for transgender and non-binary runners, beginning with San Francisco's Bay to Breakers race in 2022.[3][5] Calamia's activism has led to more races adding non-binary divisions and equitably recognizing non-binary participants' achievements, and he is an outspoken advocate for the addition of non-binary categories in the World Marathon Majors.[6][7]

Calamia has received significant press coverage, being featured in The New York Times,[8] PinkNews, The Advocate, and Like the Wind magazine, as well as local news in San Francisco.[9] He is involved in the conversation about the inclusion of trans and non-binary athletes in sports, and might be described as debunking myths about athleticism by running a sub 3-hour marathon, effectively qualifying for the Boston Marathon against all three gender standards (men, women, and non-binary).[10][11]

In December 2022, Calamia founded the first ever non-binary run club, called nbrc; the club meets for regular runs in the Bay Area.[12][13]

Athletic achievements

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In May 2022, Calamia became the first ever non-binary winner of Bay to Breakers in San Francisco.[9] In July 2022, he became the first ever non-binary winner of the San Francisco Marathon.[14] In October 2022, he placed second in the non-binary category at the Chicago Marathon.[15]

In October 2023, Calamia was granted a landmark exemption for his use of testosterone while competing.[16]

In November 2023, Calamia won the non-binary division of the New York City Marathon.[16] However, he was declared ineligible for the prize money, as he did not meet the requirement of running six New York Road Runners races in the year leading up to the marathon. Calamia said that he was unaware of this rule, which was added after he registered for the race.[17][18]

Activism

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Calamia is known for his role in increasing the inclusivity of trans and non-binary runners in trail and road races. He began pushing back against Bay to Breakers in May 2022. Initially, the historic race did not have plans to award non-binary competitors for their achievements, but Calamia rallied his local and online community to garner press coverage and change the race's award structure just one day before the race.[3][5]

He has continued working with other races, both local and international, to provide advice, consulting support, and dialogue with organizers as they roll out non-binary categories, including the San Francisco Marathon, the Chicago Marathon, and the Boston Marathon.[19]

Gender transition

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Calamia felt discomfort with his gender from a young age, but did not have the resources or education to transition until adulthood. At age 22, Calamia began taking testosterone and had chest masculinization surgery, at which point he began to identify as non-binary transmasculine and used he/him and they/them pronouns.[1]

Education and poetry

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Calamia reads from his poetry collection at the 2023 San Francisco Trans March.

In addition to running and sports activism, Calamia is a public school teacher and the author of a poetry collection called San Franshitshow.[1][20]

Calamia performs at Bay Area poetry readings.[21] His debut collection San Franshitshow was published in 2021 by Nomadic Press.[20]

Notes

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  1. ^ Calamia uses both he/him and they/them pronouns. This article uses he/him pronouns for consistency.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "A Gender-Expansive Runners Story: Cal Calamia". The San Francisco Marathon. June 23, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  2. ^ "Quotation of the Day: A Nonbinary Marathoner Finally Feels at Home". The New York Times. October 13, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "Races Are Finally Making Room for Nonbinary Runners, Whose Stories Are Driving the Change". Them. August 9, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  4. ^ "Callie Calamia - 2016-17 - Track & Field". Saint Louis University. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  5. ^ a b Ravani, Sarah (May 13, 2022). "Will Bay to Breakers recognize nonbinary runners? S.F. athlete pushes local races to join national trend". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  6. ^ Minsberg, Talya (September 14, 2022). "How Nonbinary Runners are Winning Inclusion in Major Marathons". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  7. ^ Kelleher, Patrick (May 29, 2022). "Non-binary runner taking fight for equality in athletics worldwide after historic win". PinkNews. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  8. ^ Streeter, Kurt; Glascock, Taylor (October 12, 2022). "In a New Nonbinary Category, One Marathoner Finally Feels at Home". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  9. ^ a b Fortson, Jobina (May 18, 2022). "1st non-binary San Francisco Bay to Breakers winner won more than just the race". ABC 7 News. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  10. ^ "Chicago Marathon 2022 - Results - Cal Calamaria".
  11. ^ "Qualify | Boston Athletic Association".
  12. ^ "Cal Calamia".
  13. ^ http://calcalamia.com/nbrc
  14. ^ Zucker, Joseph (July 24, 2022). "San Francisco Marathon Results 2022: Men's and Women's Top Finishers". Bleacher Report. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  15. ^ Ellis, Maddie (October 9, 2022). "Chicago Marathon: On a perfect race day, runners applaud addition of nonbinary division, say more needs to be done". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  16. ^ a b Lee, Ariana (November 5, 2023). "A nonbinary marathoner's fight to change anti-doping policy". NPR. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  17. ^ Nesbitt, Rob (January 19, 2024). "Non-binary runner from SF ineligible for prize money after winning NYC marathon". KRON4. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  18. ^ Webb, Karleigh (January 19, 2024). "Cal Calamia won the New York Marathon nonbinary division, but won't receive the winner's check". Outsports. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  19. ^ "Races Are Finally Making Room for Nonbinary Runners, Whose Stories Are Driving the Change". Them. August 9, 2022. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  20. ^ a b Odom, J. L. (September 16, 2022). "'Call me they': SF Marathon nonbinary winner Cal Calamia reflects on their first poetry collection". Local News Matters. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  21. ^ "Cal Calamia (San Franshitshow) and Caroline M. Mar (Special Education)". Passage. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
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