Director's Spotlight: Age Group Winner
In 1980 Jay Helgerson shocked the world, becoming the first person to run a marathon a week for a year – each race completed in under three hours.For the last ten years, his daughter, filmmaker Alexandra Helgerson, followed him with a camera in order to understand the eccentric man who raised her.
What she gets are his projected anxieties, his struggles with physical age and emotional distress, all while he endlessly trains for the Boston Marathon.
But as Jay trains, the film is nearly derailed by Alexandra’s encounter with a life threatening illness.
Ultimately, AGE GROUP WINNER is an affirmation of the will to live.
Join us after the film for a discussion with the filmmakers:
Alexandra Helgerson is a filmmaker, actor and musician.
She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, where she played basketball her freshman year.
After working in publishing in New York City, she began a career in acting.
Notable roles include Viola and Rosaline for the American Shakespeare Center, Vivien in VIVIEN, and Brynne in the horror-comedy HAPPY ENDING.
AGE GROUP WINNER, a ten year in the making cinema-verité documentary about her world record setting, marathon running father, is her directorial debut.
A recent survivor of sarcoma, Helgerson chronicles her experiences of love, loss, and desire on her debut album Halcyon Days, to be released in the summer of 2026.
Jay Helgerson was born in Wichita, KS and served in the U.S.
Marine Corps before earning a degree in History at the University of California, Berkeley.
In 1980 he became the first person in the world to run 52 marathons in one year, each in under 3 hours.
His feat earned him a place in the Guiness Book of World Records.
He trains daily in Portland's Forest Park, and at age 71 will run his 20th Boston Marathon in April of 2026.
When not running, Jay enjoys eating pizza, reading the news, and talking pop culture, mostly with his three daughters and two granddaughters.
| COST | ↑ top |
$20
| WEBSITE | ↑ top |
www.westnewtoncinema.com/movie/age-group-winner
| LOCATION | ↑ top |
1296 Washington Street, Newton, MA, 02465 map
Phone: (617) 964-8074
1296 Washington Street, Newton, MA 02465
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- Director's Spotlight: Age Group Winner, 4/18/26-4/18/26
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