In 2024, I ran the inaugural Every Woman’s Marathon in Savannah, Georgia. During the sold-out race, which was designed to celebrate women, I was surprised to see a sprinkling of cisgender men running, many of whom were sporting shirts declaring themselves an “ally” or a “feminist.” It made me laugh: Ah yes, I thought, a true ally, taking a bib in an at-capacity women’s race. Last year, Nike invited women to “reclaim the night” with its After Dark Tour , a series of seven women’s races culminating with a 10K in London. Videos of the race quickly went viral on social media for the sheer number of cisgender men running , and participants took to social media to voice their disappointment. Some of them blamed Nike; some blamed the men for not reading the proverbial room. The Every Woman’s Marathon was not the first time I’d run a race marketed toward women that included men, and I have run such races since.…