Cooper Teare, Fotyen Tesfay Win 2024 Boston 5K Titles
Tesfay, of Ethiopia, ran a course record time as Boston Marathon weekend got underway on Saturday.
It was a near-perfect morning as racing got underway for the long Boston Marathon weekend. The Boston 5K started things off, followed later by the B.A.A. Invitational Mile. Ethiopia’s Fotyen Tesfay and Cooper Teare of the U.S. claimed wins in the 5K, while Americans Krissy Gear and Casey Comber took home wins in the mile.
Tesfay runs a course record; Teare kicks to the win in the 5K
Tesfay rolled to victory in the women’s race at the Boston 5K. She controlled the entire race, running a time of 14:45, four seconds ahead of the previous course record set in 2022 by Senbere Teferi.
Tesfay took the race out hard from the gun, coming through the first mile in 4:43, a half second ahead of Kenya’s Emmaculate Acholi and a full eight seconds ahead of the rest of the field. She extended that advantage through the second mile and to the finish, winning by 13 seconds over second place Acholi, who ran 14:59.
“I came to break the course record, which I did, and I am so happy,” Tesfay said after the race.
Esther Gitahi of Kenya was third in 15:08, and Annie Rodenfels was the top American finisher, also running 15:08 for fourth.
The men’s race featured a sprint to the finish with Teare clocking a time of 13:38 to take the win over fellow American distance star Drew Hunter.
The men ran in a pack for much of the race. Eduardo Herrera of Mexico made the initial move in the final half mile and opened up about 10 meters on the field, but Teare and a few others were able to close the gap as they made the final turn onto Charles Street.
“If I can be in contact coming into the last straight, I think I can put myself in a pretty good spot,” Teare said of his strategy coming into the race.
From there, Teare used some good finishing speed and powered to the line to grab the win by a second over Hunter and Herrera, who wound up second and third, respectively.
Gear repeats as mile champ; Comber takes the win
For a second straight year, Krissy Gear won the women’s B.A.A. Invitational Mile. The U.S. champion in the steeplechase last year, Gear was able to successfully defend her title in the race. She unleashed a terrific kick in the final quarter mile to win in 4:42.45—a few ticks off her winning time from 2023.
Sweden’s Yolanda Ngarambe also had a strong kick, but ran out of room, taking second in 4:43.64.
In the men’s race, Comber took the title, running a time of 4:07.31. After a second place finish in 2023, Comber moved up to the top spot a year later.
The field ran down Great Britain’s Henry McLuckie, who led through the first two laps of the course. Comber proved to have the best kick in the end, outlasting second place Aaron Ahl of Canada, who ran 4:08.04.
posted Sunday April 14th