Running News Daily

Here is everything you need to know ahead of Sunday's TCS New York City Marathon

The world’s top marathoners have assembled in NYC for the 51st running of the TCS New York City Marathon this Sunday, Nov 6. The 2022 race returns to full capacity of 50,000 runners with a stacked field of elites in the men’s, women’s and wheelchair events. Defending champion Albert Korir of Kenya returns to defend the men’s title across the five boroughs and 2022 world champion Gotytom Gebreslase of Ethiopia headlines the women’s field. 

How to watch:

Unless you live on the west coast, the 2022 TCS New York City Marathon will be easy to stream and follow online. The professional women’s field will begin at 8:40 a.m. E.T. and the professional men’s field at 9:05 a.m. E.T. Viewers should note that Daylight Savings Time ends in the early hours of Sunday morning, so viewers need to remember to change their clocks back an hour.

Follow @CanadianRunning on Twitter for live tweets and up-to-date news on the 2022 TCS NYC Marathon. 

Women’s elite field

At only 27, Ethiopia’s Gebreslase has achieved much success in the marathon. In 2021, she won Berlin in her debut and followed it up with a podium finish at the 2022 Tokyo Marathon and world championship gold in Eugene this past July. Gebreslase put her talent on display in Eugene, showing that she can run at a fast pace and hold her own against the world’s best marathoners. She will be the likely favourite to win NYC Sunday.

Lonah Chemtai Salpeter is the fastest woman in the field, with a personal best of 2:17:45 from the 2020 Tokyo Marathon. Salpeter was close to an Olympic medal in Tokyo 2020 but hit a wall late and ended-up 66th. She finally got her hands on a bronze medal in Eugene this summer but was bested by Gebreslase in a late surge. Since worlds and European championships earlier this summer, Salpeter has taken some downtime to prepare for a bid at her second Abbott World Marathon Major title in NYC.

Kenya’s Edna Kiplagat will also be one to watch, with the 2011 and 2013 marathon world champion hoping to extend her record of four World Marathon Major wins to five (Boston 2021, 2017, New York 2010, and London 2014). Kiplagat was awarded the 2021 Boston Marathon title after her compatriot Diana Kipyokei was disqualified due to a positive doping test. 

Many fans of the sport have long awaited the marathon debut of two-time 5,000m Olympic medallist and world champion Hellen Obiri of Kenya. She has gone through a lot of transition this year, switching training groups and moving from Kenya to Boulder, Colo., after worlds to train with On Athletics Club (OAC). It will be interesting to see how the speedy 14:18 5K runner can handle the hilly NYC course, but she could be a dark horse for the win.  

Outside of the top big names, the U.S. will be well represented in NYC by former national record holder Keira D’Amato, who ran both the 2022 Berlin Marathon and World Championships only eight weeks apart, and Aliphine Tuliamuk, who won U.S. marathon Olympic Trials in 2020 and holds a personal best of 2:26:50.

Canadian Running prediction: Gotytom Gebreslase (ETH) – 2:21:42 *CR*

Men’s elite field

Kenya’s Korir has a tough job ahead of him on Sunday as he aims to defend his 2021 NYC Marathon title. In his two trips to the Big Apple, Korir has achieved a lot of success. In 2019, he finished runner-up to his compatriot Geoffrey Kamworor in 2:08:36, then followed it up with a win and 14-second course PB (2:08:22) in 2021 for his first world major win. One thing Korir has going for him is that he is consistent. In his last six of eight races, Korir has dipped under the 2:10-mark, which is a speedy time for New York’s hilly course. 

Korir will face stiff competition from his Kenyan compatriot, 2022 Boston Marathon champion Evans Chebet, who will be hoping for a second major marathon win of the year. Chebet, 33, holds the fastest time in the field of 2:03-flat from the 2020 Valencia Marathon.

Ethiopia’s Shura Kitata will be another name to look out for, having finished second in 2018. Since his 2020 win at the London Marathon, Kitata has struggled to reach the podium in his last three races. His last race came in March, where he was sixth at the 2022 Tokyo Marathon in 2:06:12 for fifth. Can Kitata bounce back in NYC?

Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands was second to Eliud Kipchoge in the marathon at the 2022 Olympics and set the Dutch national record of 2:04:56 at the Rotterdam Marathon in April. Nageeye has shown he has the experience to be there late, but it will be interesting to see how he handles the course in his debut.

The U.S. men’s field in New York is one of its best in years, with five sub-2:09 marathoners. The 2016 Olympic bronze medallist, Galen Rupp, will make his NYC debut and lead the way for the Americans with a personal best of 2:06:07. Leonard Korir (2:07:56), Scott Fauble (2:08:52), and Marty Hehir (2:08:59) are three others to keep your eye on. Fauble had a sensational run at the 2022 Boston Marathon, where he placed seventh in a personal best time of 2:08:52.

Canadian Running prediction: Evans Chebet (KEN) – 2:07:43