Running News Daily

Elite field for 125th Boston Marathon will include 13 former champions

The field for the 125th Boston Marathon will include 13 former champions with a combined 30 first-place Boston finishes, the Boston Athletic Association announced on Wednesday. The group competing on Oct. 11 includes World Athletics Marathon champions, Paralympic medalists, Abbott World Marathon Majors winners, and Olympians.

Four of the last five women’s open champions are scheduled to run: American Desiree Linden (2018), a two-time Olympian; Kenyan Edna Kiplagat (2017), a two-time World Athletics Marathon Championships gold medalist; Kenyan Caroline Rotich (2015); and Atsede Baysa (2016).

Two-time champion and course record holder Manuela Schär returns to defend her title in the women’s wheelchair race. Schär, a three-time Paralympic medalist from Switzerland, won Boston in 2017 and 2019 and is the only woman to have clocked a sub-1:30 marathon. Also among the wheelchair contenders is five-time Boston champion and 17-time Paralympic medalist Tatyana McFadden, who will race the 400 meters, 800 meters, 1500 meters, 5000 meters, and the marathon at the Tokyo Paralympic Games for Team USA.

The three returning men’s champions have all posted lifetime bests under 2:07:30. They are Kenya’s Geoffrey Kirui (2017), Ethiopia’s Lemi Berhanu (2016), and Yuki Kawauchi (2018), who will attempt to become the first man from Japan since Toshihiko Seiko in 1987 to earn two Boston Marathon titles.

Four men’s wheelchair champions with a combined 16 titles will return, including defending champion Daniel Romanchuk of Illinois. The 2016 and 2021 Paralympian for Team USA made history by winning the 2019 race and Abbott World Marathon Majors Series XII at just 20 years old. Course record holder Marcel Hug of Switzerland, who had four straight wins from 2015-18, is back. Ernst van Dyk of South Africa, the most decorated champion in race history with 10 titles, also will compete, as will 2012 winner and former course record holder Josh Cassidy of Canada.

The race also features restructured prize money awards that will include equal course record bonuses for the open and wheelchair divisions and the introduction of prize money for the inaugural para athletics divisions. Boston will be the first Abbott World Marathon Major event to offer equal $50,000 course record bonuses across open and wheelchair divisions, and the first event to provide a designated prize purse for athletes with upper limb, lower limb, and visual impairments.

“We are delighted to welcome so many champions from such a diverse range of competition back to Boston for the 125th running of the Boston Marathon,” said Tom Grilk, BAA president and CEO. “While October’s race marks a long-awaited return to racing, it will also recognize and celebrate the many world-class athletes competing for an historic prize purse across multiple divisions.”

(07/14/2021) Views: 113 ⚡AMP
by Andrew Mahoney

Olympian Amy Cragg Officially Retires and Joins the Puma Coaching Staff in North Carolina

She won bronze in the marathon at the 2017 world championships and ran 2:21:42 at the 2018 Tokyo Marathon—her lifetime best.

Amy Cragg, who represented the U.S. at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, is officially retiring from professional running. She is now coaching the Puma-sponsored training group alongside her husband, Alistair, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Her career highlights include winning the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials, finishing third in the marathon at the 2017 world championships, and running a 2:21:42 PR in the 2018 Tokyo Marathon.

Cragg withdrew from the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials last February, citing illness.

Amy Cragg—who won the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials, took the bronze medal in the marathon at the 2017 IAAF World Championships, and ran the 2018 Tokyo Marathon in 2:21:42, making her the sixth-fastest American in history at the distance—announced she is retiring from competitive running.

She is now officially a coach with the new Puma-sponsored training group based near Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Her husband, Alistair, is the group’s head coach.

Cragg, 37, said in a phone call with Runner’s World that she took the time she needed to make the decision. “It was definitely time [to retire],” she said. “It’s been great. I’m definitely enjoying life on the other side.”

She had suffered from persistent fatigue over the past couple of years, which kept her from competing at the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials. Now, she says, she’s feeling well again and running between two and four miles, several times a week, “just to get out there and enjoy it.”

In the summer of 2020, Cragg and her husband drove across the country from their home in Portland, Oregon, where she had trained with Bowerman Track Club for years. They looked at various locations along the way, trying to figure out where to establish Puma’s new training base.

Although they considered different spots at altitude, they ultimately decided the Research Triangle area of North Carolina was ideal for its weather, ease of travel to European track meets and American road races, and the 22-mile, crushed gravel American Tobacco Trail, which has every quarter mile marked. (The Craggs took a wheel out to measure 10 miles of the trail, and the quarters were spot on.)

They also considered medical support in the area, affordability, and job prospects for runners’ significant others.

“I’ve lived in places where people didn’t have a social life or their significant other didn’t have a social life or couldn’t work, and they were depressed,” Cragg said, “and that doesn’t lead to longevity in the sport. We want to create an environment that leads to longevity in the sport. For a lot of people, it takes them a little longer to get there. However long it takes you, we want it to be a good place for that.”

The team currently has Taylor Werner and Fiona O’Keeffe, both of whom are qualified for next month’s U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials; Steven Fahy, a steeplechaser who currently is nursing a foot injury; and Emmanuel Roudolff-Levisse, a French marathoner. The Craggs—believers in the powers of group training—expect their numbers to grow, albeit slowly.

“We aren’t in a rush to get people,” she said. “We want to get the right people. We’re hoping these are 10-year athletes, not two- or three-year athletes.”

Cragg’s career flourished when she was in her 30s, and she was involved in some of the more memorable moments in Trials history. In 2012, she narrowly missed making the team in the marathon, finishing fourth at the Trials in Houston behind Shalane Flanagan, Desiree Linden (then Davila), and Kara Goucher.

But Cragg (then Hastings) turned her attention back to the track and won the 10,000 meters at the 2012 track trials to earn her first trip to the Games. At the Olympics in London, she finished 11th in 31:10.69, her personal best.

Four years later, at the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials in Los Angeles, Cragg and training partner Flanagan ran stride for stride together, breaking the race open before the halfway point. But by the 23rd mile, Flanagan was struggling in the heat. Cragg slowed to stay with her, urging her onto the finish. With less than two miles to go, and Linden lurking in the background, Cragg finally left Flanagan and won the race in 2:28:20, waving her visor as she broke the tape.

Linden was second, in 2:28:54, and Flanagan willed herself across the line in third in 2:29:19, where she collapsed and was carried off the course. In Rio, their finishing order was reversed: Flanagan was sixth, Linden seventh, and Cragg ninth, the best collective performance by any country’s three athletes in the event. (The 2016 gold and silver medalists are currently serving suspensions for anti-doping violations.)

Training at times up to 130 miles per week with the Bowerman Track Club in Portland, Cragg qualified for the world championships in 2017 in London. At the race, she moved into third place with 400 meters and sprinted to a bronze medal.

Cragg said that was her top moment as a professional runner. “It kind of just made my entire career worthwhile,” she said.

Seven months later, in Tokyo, she ran her lifetime PR, 2:21:42, taking nearly six minutes off her previous best and putting her among the country’s top runners in history.

Cragg’s world championships bronze marked a renaissance of sorts for American women’s distance running. In Chicago in 2017, Jordan Hasay ran 2:20:57, Flanagan won the New York City Marathon in 2017, and Linden won Boston in 2018.

But after Tokyo, Cragg experienced a series of health setbacks and never was able to regain her top form for a marathon. She ran 15:54 5K in New York in November 2018 and finished third at the U.S. 5K championships, but she raced only twice in 2019. Both races—a 10K and a half marathon—were far from her best. She had planned to run the Chicago Marathon, but pulled out in the summer.

In an interview with Runner’s World at the time, Cragg talked about the fatigue she felt. “I think we just went too hard for too long,” she said. “I ‘cooked myself’ is what I’ll say. Took some time off when we realized it wasn’t coming around for Chicago. Now I’m feeling a lot better and ready to go.”

But citing illness, she withdrew from the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials in February in Atlanta.

Her only race results from 2020 were pandemic-era intrasquad meets put on by her Bowerman Track Club at a high school track in Portland. Cragg ran a few 400s and 800s at slow paces—seen as fulfilling contractual obligations.

Her peers had nothing but praise for her.

“I’m thrilled for Amy. She’s had a tremendous career,” Linden, who first met Cragg when they were undergraduates at Arizona State University, told Runner’s World in a text message. “If people could have eavesdropped on our long run conversations during our ASU days, they would have laughed at how audacious our goals were. It’s been incredible to watch her check them all off one by one and then accomplish even more. I’m grateful that while being in a hyper-competitive career, Amy’s been able to remain a friend, and I know we’ll have many more conversations about her future goals.”

Shalane Flanagan wrote in a text, “I’m so happy for her. She was a wonderful teammate and one of the toughest athletes I got to train alongside. I treasure all the time spent together chasing big goals and dreams.” 


(06/06/2021) Views: 670 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World

After placing fourth at the Olympic Trials, Desiree Linden planned to race the Boston Marathon. Like everybody else, she’s trying to figure out what’s next

Very little has gone according to plan for anybody this year. And Desiree Linden is no exception.

After placing fourth on February 29 at the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials (the top three—Aliphine Tuliamuk, Molly Seidel, and Sally Kipyego—made the U.S. Olympic Team), she was disappointed. The alternate position wasn’t what the two-time Olympian was after on the hilly Atlanta course. However, her spirits were quickly lifted, she said, because she also had the Boston Marathon coming up on April 20—the race she won in 2018.

“Having Boston on the schedule made me move on and not dig into what happened at the Trials too much,” she said. “Then Boston got canceled and I was like, ‘Dear god, I probably need to process this.’

Officials announced on Friday that the 2020 Boston Marathon would be postponed until September 14 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Linden said she found out at the same time everybody else did, at her home in Rochester Hills, Michigan.

“I went for a run during the press conference,” she said. “Obviously I had been connecting the dots like everybody else and it was the obvious thing to do.”

Linden, 36, took a little time on Monday during a phone interview with Women’s Running to reflect on her Trials race and the Boston Marathon cancellation, as well as offer some advice to runners struggling without races on the calendar. What follows are some outtakes from the conversation.

The Olympic Marathon Trials and evaluating her performance.- Linden said she hasn’t spent a lot of time going over the details of the Atlanta race. The course was difficult, but she felt prepared for it. The training got a little tricky when she came down with the flu about three weeks before the race.

“We managed the training—I just didn’t have a great hand of cards. I had a respectable day, but it wasn’t indicative of my ability and I think the further away we get from that race, the less I remember. I don’t think there’s a lot of value in overthinking it anyway. Obviously the course was super tough and I remember that Laura [Thweatt] was pushing the group most of the second lap [of an eight-mile loop, run three times] and part of the third. She stretched us out a little bit and I covered her move, then Aliphine and Molly went after that. I had run that last [5K] section of the course the day before and I wonder if I over-respected it or got it just right? I was on super tired legs and I knew that last section was going to be really tough for everybody, so I left a little bit in the reserves. When I finished, I was perfectly exhausted—my legs were toast and there was nowhere in those last three miles I could have done more.”

After the Trials finish, Linden said she was feeling more positive because her training had been going in the right direction after recovering from the flu. She knew she could capitalize on it for the Boston Marathon.

“Immediately after the Trials, it was just Boston, Boston, Boston. That was super exciting. That day after the Trials I felt surprisingly decent. Then this buzz about the coronavirus started getting louder and then it became a little more exhausting to get out the door. It was hard to think about workouts geared toward Boston when I started thinking, ‘I could just be recovering right now.’ But also, running is my normal and what makes me feel better. Anyway, I’m enjoying a little break finally and that feels good—I’m just running based on how I feel, assuming we can continue running outside. I’ll slowly get back into it.”

(03/18/2020) Views: 413 ⚡AMP
by Erin Strout

So what US marathoners are going to come out on top at next weekend’s Olympic Trials

The three Olympic women’s berths from next Saturday’s US marathon trials in Atlanta look to be up for grabs among at least five challengers. Besides Desiree Linden, who placed seventh in Rio, there are Jordan Hasay, who was third in Boston last year, Emily Sisson, who was sixth in London in her 26-mile debut, Molly Huddle, a two-time track Olympian, and Sara Hall.

Amy Cragg, who placed ninth in Rio and would have been a contender, has been battling Epstein-Barr virus and withdrew this week.

Linden, the former Boston Marathon victor who’s bidding to make her third team, already has committed to competing here in April. If she qualifies for the Games, she’ll be running three marathons in just over five months.

On the men’s side, Galen Rupp, who won bronze in 2016, is the decided favorite, with Jared Ward (sixth in Rio), Leonard Korir, and Scott Fauble, last year’s top domestic finisher in Boston, also in the mix.

The Atlanta loop course, which will finish in Centennial Olympic Park, is a hilly challenge and will be more so if the midday temperature is in the 70s, as it often is on that date. That’s still cooler than it’s likely to be in Sapporo (average temperature 78), the former Winter Games site where the races were moved to avoid Tokyo’s sauna (87).

(02/23/2020) Views: 1,055 ⚡AMP

John Hancock and the Boston Athletic Association announced 16 Boston marathon champions will be running the 2020 Boston Marathon

In a joint statement this morning, John Hancock and the Boston Athletic Association announced that sixteen prior race champions, including 2018 winner Desiree Linden, would run the 2020 Boston Marathon scheduled for Monday, April 20.  The 2020 race, always held on the third Monday in April, will be the 124th running of the world’s oldest marathon.

“In our 35th year as principal sponsor of this historic race, we are excited to welcome back our accomplished champions,” said John Hancock chief marketing officer Barbara Goose through a statement.  “Their return is a testimony to the tradition and legacy that is the Boston Marathon. These champions are not just racing each other, they are chasing history.”

While today’s announcement included the race’s four open and wheelchair division champions from 2019 –Lawrence Cherono of Kenya, Worknesh Degefa of Ethiopia, Manuela Schär of Switzerland and Daniel Romanchuk of the United States– it is the inclusion of Linden, a two-time Olympian, which will likely get the most attention, at least domestically.  Linden, 36, who won the bitterly cold and rain-soaked edition of the race in 2018 where three quarters of the elite field couldn’t finish, will run Boston for the eight time.  Moreover, she plans to double back from the USA Olympic Team Trials Marathon which will take place 51 days earlier in Atlanta on February 29.  A top-3 finish there would put her on her third Olympic team.

“Running the Boston Marathon seven weeks after the U.S. Olympic Trials is a plan that has been in the works for roughly a year,” Linden explained in a written statement.  “I crossed the finish line in 2019 and knew if my body was capable, I wanted to return to Boston in 2020. My coach, Walt Drenth, and I had some long conversations on doing the double, how we would tailor the training, and if it was reasonable to expect to run well in both races.  We were both excited about the challenge.”

Linden’s marathon career began inauspiciously in Boston in 2007 when she finished 18th in 2:44:56, a time which would only have qualified her for next year’s Olympic Trials by four seconds.  But when she returned to the race in 2011, she was a different athlete, nearly winning in a personal best 2:22:38 after a thrilling three-way battle against Kenya’s Caroline Kilel and Sharon Cherop on Boylston Street.  Kilel got the win in 2:22:36, just two seconds ahead of Linden and six seconds ahead of Cherop.

Other prior race champions in the open division announced for the 2020 marathon were Yuki Kawauchi of Japan (first in 2018); Edna Kiplagat (2017), Geoffrey Kirui (2017), and Caroline Rotich of Kenya (2015); and Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia (2013 and 2015), the reigning World Athletics marathon champion.  Prior wheelchair division champions who have entered were Tatyana McFadden of the United States (2013 – 2016, 2018), Marcel Hug of Switzerland (2015 – 2018), Ernst van Dyk of South Africa (2011 – 2016, 2008 – 2010, 2014), Hiroyuki Yamamoto (2013) and Masazumi Soejima (2007 and 2011) of Japan, and Josh Cassidy of Canada (2012).

“The race for the tape on Patriots’ Day will surely be both competitive and compelling, as John Hancock has fielded a tremendous team of champions,” said Tom Grilk, the B.A.A. CEO.  “With 16 returning champions, the roads leading to Boston will be filled with many of the most decorated runners and wheelchair racers in history. Another memorable chapter in Boston Marathon history will surely unfold on April 20.”

The Boston Marathon –which recorded 26,632 finishers in 2019– is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, a confederation of the world’s top marathons, and is also a World Athletics Platinum Label road race.  The Platinum Label is new for 2020 and has been given only to a super-elite group of eight marathons so far: Tokyo, Nagoya Women’s, Seoul, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York (two to four more may be added, according to World Athletics).

(12/17/2019) Views: 774 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

Gwen Jorgensen announces move to track for 2020

The 2020 US. Olympic Marathon Trials on Feb. 29 were marked on Gwen Jorgensen’s calendar since her Nov. 2017 announcement that she was leaving the triathlon to pursue running full time in hopes of winning the 2020 Olympic gold medal in the marathon.

But now, less than three months out from the event, Jorgensen announced that she will not run the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials and instead focus on making the U.S. team for the Summer Games on the track in the 10,000 meters.

“It’s a multitude of emotions,” Jorgensen, 33, says. “I’m disappointed. At the same time, I’m also excited. I’m at a point where I’m running 70 miles per week and training is going well. I just know that if I went to the trials, running 70 miles per week, I’d be hoping that I made a team. That’s not what I want to do at an Olympic Trials.

I want to go in confident and knowing that I have the ability to make a team. My goals in the marathon aren’t changing. My timeline is.”

Heel surgery forced Jorgensen, who converted to distance running after winning the Rio Olympic triathlon, to pass up the Feb. 29 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials and focus on the track and field trials in June in the 10,000m and, probably, the 5000m.

She made the decision after recent talks with her coach, Jerry Schumacher, following a difficult recovery from late May surgery to correct Haglund’s deformity.

“I could get bent out of shape and sad about it, but at the end of the day, I’m excited because I know this path that I’m on will not only be a successful route, but I also think it will lead to success long term in the marathon," she says. "I’m confident in my abilities on the track."

Jorgensen’s goal was a lofty one from the onset. No American woman has won gold in the marathon at the Olympics since Joan Benoit Samuelson’s victory in the 1984 inaugural running. The 2020 trials, where the top three finishers qualify for Tokyo, are shaping up to be one of the most competitive races of the year, as American women’s distance running is at its highest level with recent World Marathon Major victories by Shalane Flanagan at the 2017 New York City Marathon and Desiree Linden at the 2018 Boston Marathon.

Even after giving birth to her son Stanley in Aug. 2017, Jorgensen could have returned to the triathlon and arguably been a contender to become the first woman to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals. But she and her family decided to move to Portland, Ore., and once settled there, Jorgensen signed a professional running contract with Nike and joined the Bowerman Track Club.

Jorgensen worked her way to the marathon by racing on the track in the spring of 2018 and ran a few U.S.A. Track and Field road race championships. She says her training went well, nailing all but one workout in 12 weeks. But in the three days before she was set to compete in the Chicago Marathon, Jorgesen battled a fever and underestimated the effects of running while sick. She finished in a disappointing 2:36:23 in her professional marathon debut.

Now fully healed, healthy and recovered, Jorgensen is working her way back to train with her Bowerman teammates. Her day sometimes includes a hill sprints, a track workout, pelvic floor therapist treatment, physical therapy exercises for her achilles and then an evening workout before returning to her family.

“I think it’s important not to be afraid when you need to admit that your goal needs to change,” Jorgensen says. “I’m not going to say that I’m failing because I still want to have my marathon goals, but the timeline has changed. It’s still important to have big goals and to share those goals. It holds everyone accountable.”

(12/05/2019) Views: 865 ⚡AMP
by Chris Cahvez

Sinead Diver proved again that age is no barrier as the 42-year-old finished fifth at the New York City Marathon

Proving again that age is no barrier to the distance or pace of elite marathon running, Sinead Diver finished a superb fifth best woman in the New York Marathon, her time of 2:26:23 equally rewarding over what is one of the toughest of all the big city courses.

Improving on her seventh place finish in the London Marathon back in April, Diver was also closing fast on the fourth-placed Nancy Kiprop from Kenya, finishing just two seconds behind, the top four women all from the East African nations that typically dominate the long distances. 

Although quietly insistent about not making a big deal about her age, now just four months shy of her 43rd birthday, Diver’s performance is among the most impressive in the now 49 years of the New York Marathon, especially given the mother of two, who still works full-time as a software developer, only took up running at 33.

Her best time remains the 2:24:11 she clocked in London just six months ago, although New York is rarely a place to run records of any sort. Still very much the Irish woman running for Australia - as Diver is happy and proud to put it - it’s also the best Irish performance in the race after Mark Carroll took sixth place in the men’s race in 2002.

With outright victory and the $100,000 top prize going to Kenya’s Joyciline Jepkosgei in 2:22:38, just seven seconds shy of the course record and the second fastest women’s time ever run in New York, this was also one of the most competitive races in those 49 years.

Kenya’s four-time previous winner Mary Keitany was broken by Jepkosgei in the closing miles and ended up second in 2:23:33, with the top Ethiopian Ruti Aga, who won the Tokyo Marathon back in March, third in 2:25:51.

Unlike the other Marathon Majors, New York also doesn’t employ pacemakers, male or female, which also makes it a true run race. Diver actually put herself at the very front from just after the starting canon, setting the pace from the start on Staten Island and over the Verrazzano Bridge into Brooklyn.

Diver then endured a slight detour around the three-mile when directed to the wrong side of a course crash barrier, forcing her to duck under some race tap to escape, but she quickly regained her composure.

After the East African women pressed ahead before halfway, Diver held her own pace, passing halfway in 1:12:02, average out at 5:35-mile pace: the American Desiree Linden, former winner of the Boston Marathon, who also set the pace early on, was reeled in over the final miles and ended up sixth 2:26:46, still one of the fastest times by any American run in New York.

With around 52,500 starters, the biggest of the big city marathons, the testing course, winds through the Five Boroughs, before finishing up through the rolling hills of Central Park, rarely lets up and neither did Diver. 

“New York will be hilly and I prefer flat courses, but the experience of just racing for placing will be great practice leading into Tokyo,” she said beforehand, her 2:24:11 from London almost certain to get her on the start line for that Olympic marathon next summer, where she be will representing Australia, and the clearly now not unrealistic medal contender. 

New York will likely be her last marathon before the Olympics. Having missed out on Rio 2016 due to a knee injury caused by the cuboid bone in her foot, competing in Tokyo will be extra special for Diver.

Recently taking a small leave of absence from here full-time work as a software developer in order to prepare of for New York, she said: “If you feel good enough to do it then give it a go,” she says about racing so competitively at age 42. “Nobody else can tell you what your body is capable of. There is nothing to suggest that when you turn 40 you need to fall apart. It hasn’t happened for me and I feel fitter than I was ten years ago. If I can do it then I can’t see why other people can’t do it too.”

She’s come a long way from her native Belmullet in Mayo, then Limerick and now Melbourne, where she moved in 2002 with her Limerick-born husband Colin, now also home to their two sons young Eddie (nine) and Dara (six).

Just over a month ago she clocked an excellent 31:25:49 to finish 14th in the World Championships 10,000m in the searing heat of Doha, a world record for a woman over the age of 40. Her 2:24:11 in London improved by over a minute the 2:25:19 she ran to win the Melbourne Marathon in October 2018, that already the second fastest ever by an Irish woman, her London time now the third fastest by Australian standards.

Her remarkable running story (and unfortunate “switch” to Australia, after Athletics Ireland refused to select her for the 2015 World Championship marathon in Beijing) has been told before: within six months of winning Melbourne last year, Diver also improved her track times over 5,000m (15:23.65) and 10,000m (31:50.98), before running 1:08:55 for the half marathon in Japan in February, also the fastest ever time for a woman over the age of the 40. 

Geoffrey Kamworor made it a Kenyan double by winner the men’s race in 2:08:13, the best non-African finisher there being the American Jared Ward in sixth, in 2:10:45, making Diver the outright best non-African finisher on the day. Superb running by any standards.

(11/03/2019) Views: 790 ⚡AMP
by Ian O’Riordan

Joyciline Jepkosgei wins the New York City marathon out running last year’s winner and Geoffrey Kamworor wins the men race

The world record holder for the women's half marathon running 1:04:51 in 2017, Joyciline Jepkosgei in her marsthon debut out-ran last year's winner Mary Keitany to win this year's New York City Marathon clocking 2:22:38. Keitany finished second in 2:23:32.  Both are from Kenya. 

Boston Marathon champion Desiree Linden lead much of the first half and held on to be the first American placing sixth running 2:26:49 just three seconds ahead of Kellyn Taylor also from the US who ran an amazing well paced race.  

Australian, 42-year-old Sinead Diver placed 5th clocking 2:26:23.  At one point early she took the lead and looked in control. 

It was 46 degrees at the start and the wind at points did slow down the times.  Over 52,000 runners started.  

Kenyan's Geoffrey Kamworor who set the world record for the half marathon in Copenhagen running 58:01 in September ran away from the field to win the men's race clocking 2:08:13.  This was his second win. Albert Korir placed second clocking 2:08:36.

Jared Ward was sixth overall and first American clocking 2:10:45. There were many outstanding performances today. 71-year-old Gene Dykes finish with 3:11:19.  

(11/03/2019) Views: 1,162 ⚡AMP

Sara Hall of Flagstaff finished fifth Sunday at the Berlin Marathon, first among American women

Sara Hall, 36, ran a personal best 2 hours, 22 minutes, 16 seconds, sixth fastest in U.S. marathon history. Her previous PR was 2:26.20 at the 2018 Ottawa Marathon.

The women’s race was won by Ashete Bekere in 2:20:14, pulling away at the end from fellow-Ethiopian Mare Dibaba, 2:20:21, with Kenya’s Sally Chepyego taking third overall in 2:21:06.

Hall’s time takes four minutes from her previous best time of 2:26:20 and moves her up to sixth in the U.S. all-time rankings.

“I’m very happy. It’s the first time I’ve run a marathon with negative splits,” Hall told Runner’s World. “When I began to catch other women after halfway, I had fun and ran some 5:15 miles. It got tough near the end, with strong wind and running alone, but I finished strong. Ryan and I knew I was ready for an improvement, and it’s good to do it well.”

Hall is among several women with Arizona ties who are U.S. contenders for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Others include Amy Cragg, Emily Sisson, Kellyn Taylor, Desiree Linden, Allie Kieffer and Stephanie Bruce. 

Hall also gave a lot of credit to her husband and coach, Ryan Hall, who is the American record holder in the half marathon. She said it was her best period of training ever, with not one day off for injury or illness since racing Boston in April.

“We knew from her training times that she was ready to move to a new level. It was a matter of getting it right in the race today,” Ryan Hall added.

(09/30/2019) Views: 1,146 ⚡AMP
by Jeff Mecalfe

Desiree Linden is set to Defend her title at 2019 Humana Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon

The 2019 Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon will once again include a world-class group of elite men and women when they toe the line on Sept. 15 in the City of Brotherly Love. Given the depth of the elite field, the half marathon is set to be one of the most competitive races in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series® circuit all year.

The flat and fast course starts on Benjamin Franklin Parkway, runs through Center City before winding along the city’s scenic Schuylkill River and finishing at the iconic “Rocky Steps” of the Philadelphia Art Museum.

Leading the field will be the defending women’s Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon champion Desiree “Des” Linden. Linden won the 2018 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American woman to win the race in 33 years. Linden is a two-time Olympian from San Diego, Calif. and has represented the United States of America at the last two Summer Olympic Games.

Her best finish came in 2016 in Rio when she placed seventh in the women’s marathon. Her personal best in the marathon is 2:22:38 while her best for the half marathon is 1:10:34. “I’m looking forward to returning to the Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon to defend my title,” said Linden.

“Last year this race worked well in my preparations for the TCS New York City Marathon; I’m excited to compete against my fellow Americans and the international field on the streets of Philly.” Linden’s victory at the 2018 Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon came in her first competitive race after winning the Boston Marathon, and she will be striving for a repeat this year among yet another stacked field of contenders. In addition to Linden, the women’s field is punctuated by a wealth of talent that features Olympians and rising stars. One of those rising stars is Fontana, Calif. native Jordan Hasay.

Hasay, just 27 years old, has landed herself on the podium at marquee events throughout the country: she placed third in both the 2017 and 2019 editions of the Boston Marathon, finishing with a time of 2:23:00 and 2:25:20, respectively. In addition to that, Hasay took third at the 2017 Chicago Marathon with a finishing time of 2:20:57.

Hasay’s participation in the 2019 Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon will mark her second year running in the event, following her third-place finish in 2017 when she clocked in at 1:10:41. “I competed here at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon in 2017 and enjoyed the race, I went on to set a personal best at Chicago Marathon that year so I hope that I can come here and perform at the front end which will set me up for another great marathon,” said Hasay.

“This race is steeped in USA road racing history; countless national and world records have been set here, so I would love to add my name to the roll of honor.” The star-studded men’s field is led by four-time Olympian Abdi Abdirahman. The Somalian-born Abdirahman represented the United States at the Olympics in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 and placed third in the New York City Marathon in 2016. He has personal bests of 2:08:56 in the marathon and 1:01:07 in the half marathon.

Abdirahman will be taking on talented newcomers like Clayton Young and established competition like Tyler Andrews. Young, who hails from American Fork, Utah, was the 2019 NCAA 10,000-meter champion, and will be making his debut in Philadelphia. Cambridge, Mass. native Andrews took home top honors at the 2019 United Airlines Rock ‘n’ Roll Washington DC Marathon & ½ Marathon with a finishing time of 2:24:13 in the marathon. 

“We are incredibly excited about the field of participants that are slated to run at the Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon,” said Audra Tassone, Regional Director for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series.

“This event has proven to be one of the most successful tune-up events for an incredibly talented group of elite runners and we are anxious to see how it all shakes out next month. To be able to put World Marathon Major winners, Olympic medalists, and World Champions on the same starting line is a testament to the regard in which this race is held.”

(08/23/2019) Views: 1,039 ⚡AMP

Kellyn Taylor will join to Top U.S. Women field at the 2019 TCS New York City Marathon

When Kellyn Taylor was plotting the lead up to the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, she had already checked “run a fast marathon time” off her to-do list, by way of the 2:24:28 she clocked at the 2018 Grandma’s Marathon. What else did she want to accomplish before the big show?

“I’ve done New York City once and it was my highest placing [in a major marathon] ever,” Taylor said, during a phone interview with Women’s Running. “It was my favorite marathon to date. For me, it’s more about not feeling stagnant before the Trials—I perform best when I come off a big buildup.”

The tactical nature of the New York City Marathon, combined with the hillier terrain of the course will serve as good practice for the Trials course that she’ll run on February 29, in Atlanta. And the competition she’ll face? On the American side, it will also look familiar, joined by a stellar international presence as well.

New York City Marathon officials announced the full professional field on Tuesday, and it includes Mary Keitany of Kenya, the defending champion who has won the race four times already. It also includes Ruti Aga of Ethiopia with a 2:18:34 personal best, and Worknesh Degefa, also of Ethiopia, who has a 2:17:41 best and won the 2019 Boston Marathon. Joyciline Jepkosgei, the world record holder in the half marathon (1:04:51) from Kenya is also slated to compete.

Taylor will face off with a number of U.S. women who she’ll compete with in February at the Trials, where the top three finishers will earn a place on the 2020 Olympic team. Desiree Linden, the 2018 Boston Marathon champion and two-time Olympian, will race, as well as Sara Hall, who has a 2:26:20 best. Allie Kieffer (2:28:12) is scheduled to return to racing, too, after tending to injuries over the past year, along with Diane Nukuri.

When Taylor ran the 2017 New York City Marathon, she placed eighth in 2:29:56. She came away with a few key lessons she’ll try to remember on November 3.

“Having faith in your abilities is the biggest thing. The last time, I didn’t make the first big move that everybody else made and found myself separated from the pack,” she said. “I ran the fastest mile of anybody in that race when I caught back up to them, so I need to put myself in it. That’s when the magic happens.”

Taylor is coming off a third-place finish in the 10,000 meters at the U.S.A. Track & Field Outdoor Championships, which is her best finish at a national track championships. It leaves her with another notch of confidence heading into 2020.

(08/09/2019) Views: 1,145 ⚡AMP
by Erin Strout

Desiree Linden is going to be running the New York City Marathon before Boston

Des Linden says she’s running every marathon as if it’s her last. She could have said goodbye on April 15, finishing fifth in defense of her Boston Marathon title, blowing kisses to the crowd after denying regurgitation.

Instead, Linden plans to race the New York City Marathon for the third time and second year in a row on Nov. 3.

The two-time U.S. Olympian placed fifth in 2014 and sixth in 2018 at the five-borough event. She decided to sign up again after a post-Boston break and a weeklong Hong Kong vacation.

“Just been logging a lot of miles deciding what would be next and got the itch to start doing workouts and getting the longer stuff,” Linden said. “It’s the biggest stage in the world, so it’s hard to pass up on that opportunity. It’s a no-brainer. I like tough, technical courses.”

Linden, 36, could become the oldest female U.S. Olympic marathoner since 2004 next year. But, taking the one-at-a-time mantra that Shalane Flanagan adopted late in her career, she’s not (yet) committing to the Olympic trials on Feb. 29.

Neither of Linden’s previous Olympic experiences was especially memorable. She dropped out of her first Olympic marathon in 2012 with a stress fracture in her femur. She was seventh in Rio, missing a medal by less than two minutes. The Kenyan-born gold and silver medalists were later busted for EPO and are serving lengthy doping bans.

“I don’t feel like I have anything to prove and anything unfinished,” at the Olympics, Linden said. “Quite frankly, the last experience is a hard sell to get back out there to try to compete for medals when you’re not even really sure what the field is all about. It’s a little bit difficult to be excited about that with the way we are about the [World Marathon] Majors. People investing in anti-doping have really been solving that problem [at the majors]. It’s a little tricky [at the Olympics], but certainly representing your country is special.”

Linden did acknowledge that a technical, undulating course like New York could provide ideal preparation for the Olympic trials course in Atlanta that, like New York, is not expected to produce fast times. Linden also dismissed it being too tight of a turnaround from the latest of the fall major marathons to a trials in the winter.

Linden did not race fall marathons in 2011 or 2015 ahead of Olympic trials, though the trials race was earlier each of those years. If she does race at next year’s trials, it would mark her shortest break between marathons of what would be her 20 times contesting the distance.

“There’s ample time to recover and get back at it,” she said. “I don’t need to go and run a fast time or get a qualifier or anything. It was just about picking the race that was going to get me excited.”

(08/06/2019) Views: 953 ⚡AMP
by Nick Zaccardi

Desiree Linden put forth a strong effort but failed to defend her 2018 Boston Marathon title, fading from second place to finish the 26.2-mile course in fifth place clocking 2:27:00

“It was an honor to be back and I knew today was going to be a big test to defend but I had a blast out there,” Linden told NBC Sports Network. “Right around 18 (miles), I thought, ‘I think I’m done. Hang up the shoes, retire.' The Boston crowds are so phenomenal, they just kind of helped me regroup.”

Despite Linden joining the lead pack from the start and leading at times, it quickly became the chase pack as 28-year-old Ethiopian Worknesh Degefa separated from the group early and built about a 90 second lead before the 10 mile mark. Degefa won the race with a time of 2:23:30.

With much better racing conditions this year, 35-year-old Linden easily beat her championship time of 2 hours, 39 minutes, 54 seconds from a year ago.

Linden, who lives in Washington, Mich., put on a surge to take the lead of the chase pack with just over 10 miles to go, but the pack trailed Degefa by over two and a half minutes at that point. Linden and fellow American Jordan Hassay even moved into second and third-place, respectively, before Linden fell back from the pack. Hassay, 27, finished as the top American in third place with a time of 2:25:20.

“I think Jordan’s come here and done really well,” Linden said. “She’s in that third spot consistently and she’s going to have a breakthrough on this course. She’s going to make a name for herself. She is the future -- well, she is right now -- of American distance running. The future is bright.”

Linden went through the halfway mark at 1:13:09. Linden’s time has met the American Olympic qualifying standard. After claiming a $150,000 prize for winning last year, Linden will take home a $15,000 prize for fifth place this year.

What is next for Linden?

“Lunch right now, for sure,” Linden said. “Then, regroup ... You finish fifth and you go, ‘maybe there’s a little bit more.’”

(04/15/2019) Views: 1,131 ⚡AMP

Ethiopian Worknesh Degefa took command of the women's Boston Marathon race by the 7 mile mark and built it to over two minutes by half way and held on to win as America's Jordan Hasay finished third

Worknesh Degefa, 29, built up a commanding lead and even through Kenya's Edna Kiplagat closed the gap in the last few miles Degefa went on the win clocking 2:23:31 at the 2019 Boston Marathon.  Edna Kiplegat of Kenya started to break away from the rest of the chase pack at about 30K, trying to run the Ethiopian leader down, but the gap was too wide. Edna Kiplagat finished 44 seconds back clocking 2:24:14.  Jordan Hasasy from the US finished third clocking 2:25:20.    

Going into the race Degefa was ready to run well.  This January in Dubai, Worknesh Degefa set an Ethiopian national marathon record with her 2:17:41 second place finish. With that result she became the fourth fastest women’s marathoner in history.

Historically a half marathon specialist, Degefa’s top ten half marathon times (2013-2016) were run with an average time of 67:30. Her personal best was recorded at the 2016 Prague Half Marathon where she finished second in 66:14. She earned the silver medal at the 2015 All African Games Half Marathon. Degefa made her debut in the marathon in 2017 with a win at the Dubai Marathon, which she says is her proudest accomplishment. 

Degefa trains in the Oromia region of Ethiopia in Arsi and Assela because of its altitude and good weather for training. Her coach is Gemedu Dedefo. Her favorite foods are rice and pasta and she enjoys traveling in Europe.

Jordan Hasay finished third again this year.  Choosing Boston to make her debut in 2017, Jordan Hasay ran 2:23:00 to finish third. She set an American women’s debut record by three minutes and recorded the fourth fastest time ever run in the race by an American woman behind Shalane Flanagan, Desiree Linden and Joan Benoit Samuelson.

After Boston, Hasay ran the Bank of America Chicago Marathon and once again finished third, but improved her time to 2:20:57, becoming the second fastest American woman marathoner of all time. Besides making the podium in both the Boston and Chicago Marathons, Hasay set a half marathon personal best time of 67:55 with her sixth-place finish at the 2017 Prague Half Marathon.

During the race she set a 15K personal best of 48:21 and a 20K personal best of 64:32. She also won the 2017 U.S. national titles in the 20K, 10 Mile and 15K. Hasay was injured during 2018, but after surgery on her foot has made a complete recovery.

Hasay has been running since she was 12 years old and grew up in Arroyo Grande, California. 

Last year's winner Desiree Linden finished fifth clocking 2:27:00.  The weather was not a factor this year unlike last year.  

(04/15/2019) Views: 1,594 ⚡AMP

John Hancock 2019 Boston Marathon US Elite Open Team

Featured video: 2019 Boston Marathon John Hancock U.S. Elite Open Team for Monday April 15.

Abdi Abdirahman, a four-time Olympian, placed sixth at the 2017 Boston Marathon. He is a multiple national champion in the 10,000m, 10K, 10-mile and half marathon. 

Shadrack Biwott finished third this year in Boston. Last year, he was second American and fourth overall. Biwott placed fifth at the 2016 TCS New York City Marathon in a personal best time of 2:12:01.

Aaron Braun, 13th at the 2018 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, is a versatile road runner. Braun is a national champion in the 12K and was top American at the 2015 Houston Marathon.

Sarah Crouch has finished top-ten three times at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, including this year where she was top American and ninth overall. She is a past champion of the Tallahassee Marathon and finished 11th at the 2016 Boston Marathon.

Jeffrey Eggleston has raced on three IAAF World Championships Marathon teams, placing as high as 13th in 2018. He has won the Pittsburgh, Woodlands, Lima and San Diego Marathons and has been runner-up in Brisbane, Pittsburgh and at Twin Cities.

Scott Fauble was the second American and seventh overall at the 2018 TCS New York City Marathon. Fauble placed fourth in the 10,000m at the 2016 Olympic Trials and represented the United States at the 2017 IAAF World Cross Country Championships.  

Lindsay Flanagan, the 2015 Pan American silver medalist in the marathon, finished 11th at the 2017 Boston Marathon and set her personal best of 2:29:25 at the Frankfurt Marathon this year.  

Sara Hall is the tenth fastest U.S. women’s marathoner of all time having set her 2:26:20 mark at the 2018 Ottawa Marathon. Hall has earned national titles in the marathon, 20K, 10-mile, mile and cross country. She is married to Ryan Hall, who is a John Hancock Elite Athlete Ambassador and holds the American course record of 2:04:58 at the Boston Marathon. 

Jordan Hasay set an American debut record of 2:23:00 with her third-place finish in Boston in 2017. She then ran the second fastest marathon of all time by a U.S. woman at the 2018 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, where she placed third in 2:20:57. Hasay is an 18-time All American and a national champion at 15K and 20K.  

Elkanah Kibet, a member of the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program, has had two top-ten finishes at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. At the 2017 IAAF World Championships Marathon, Kibet finished top American and 16th overall. He was 8th in Boston in 2018.

Desiree Linden, a two-time Olympian, returns to Boston as defending champion. A top-five finisher in eight Abbott World Marathon Majors, additional accomplishments include placing seventh at the 2016 Olympic Games Marathon, tenth at the 2009 IAAF World Championships Marathon, second at the 2012 and 2016 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials and second in the 10,000m at the 2015 Pan American Games. In addition to her 2018 win in Boston, she placed second in 2011.

Timothy Ritchie, the 2017 U.S. National Marathon champion, ran for the U.S. at the 2016 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships where he placed 23th. Ritchie is the head men’s cross country coach at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Dathan Ritzenhein is the fourth fastest U.S. marathoner of all time with a 2:07:47 personal best. Career highlights for the three-time Olympian include finishing ninth at the 2008 Olympic Marathon, winning the bronze medal at the 2009 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships and finishing 13th at the 2012 Olympic Games 10,000m. 

Sarah Sellers ran through freezing rain and torrential wind this year to finish second behind Des Linden. In her 2017 marathon debut, Sellers won the Huntsville Marathon. In New York this year she finished 18th.

Brian Shrader is a versatile runner on the track and roads. He made his half marathon debut in Boston this year at the B.A.A. Half Marathon, running 1:05:26. He also made his marathon debut in 2018, running 2:13:31 at the USA Championships in Sacramento.  

Becky Wade, a champion of the California International Marathon, finished 11th at the 2018 Virgin Money London Marathon and tenth at the 2017 Bank of America Chicago Marathon. 

Jared Ward placed third at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials and followed with a sixth-place finish at the Olympic Marathon in Rio de Janeiro, less than a minute and a half out of medal contention. In 2017 Ward was tenth at the Boston Marathon and this year, he finished top American and sixth overall at the TCS New York City Marathon. 

(04/10/2019) Views: 1,218 ⚡AMP

Sara Sellers placed second at the 2018 Boston Marathon and is ready to run it again on Monday

When Sarah Sellers rises at 4 a.m., it’s not to sip coffee slowly in the still of the morning or head off to an early shift at the Tucson hospital where she works as a nurse anesthetist. Instead, Sellers hits the blaring alarm and gets out her shoes to tackle another early morning run.

Sellers is preparing for her second appearance in the Boston Marathon after a long love affair with running. The 27-year-old started in middle school with her parents on the trails behind their house in Ogden, Utah, and went on to run in college for Weber State from 2009–13.

For someone who has spent most of her life running, qualifying for the Boston Marathon came easy. But competing among the elites was another task all together. In 2018, Sellers arrived on the starting line in Hopkinton as a relatively unknown runner and had only competed in one marathon, in Huntsville, Utah, in Sept. 2017. She won her debut in 2:44:27—nearly 15 minutes ahead of the next woman.

“In some ways last year it was really nice to be totally naïve and do my own thing and not have anyone besides a few family members and my coach interested in how I did,” Sellers says.

The conditions at the 2018 Boston Marathon were anything but ideal. At the start of the race temperatures hovered around 37 degrees. A torrential downpour, which amounted to over a half inch of rain, soaked runners for the entirety of the race. The worst part, according to Sellers, who compared running in the heavy rains to being in a car wash, was the strong headwinds that reached up to 35 miles per hour. More than 2,500 runners visited medical tents during the race and 1,123 participants did not finish.

When Sellers crossed the finish line in 2:44:04 as the second runner in the women’s division behind two-time Olympian Desiree Linden, who became the first American woman to win the race in 33 years, her anonymity to the general public quickly vanished. Suddenly, the media was clamoring to talk to Sellers, who was in a state of disbelief over her second-place finish. “Who is Sarah Sellers?” started popping on search engines, running message boards and social media. The reality sank in after she found her husband, Blake, and he confirmed that the result was no fluke.

“It was the mixture of excitement and almost this daunting feeling,” Seller says. “It was a little bit scary because I knew it was going to be a big deal but I also asked myself ‘What did I just do?’”

Before April 16, 2018, not many people would’ve cared that Sellers ran track and cross country in middle school and high school before joining the teams at Weber State in her hometown. She was a nine-time Big Sky conference champion during her college career and was voted the university’s 2012 Female Athlete of the Year. After she was diagnosed with a stress fracture in the navicular bone in her foot during her senior year, Sellers didn’t know if she would be able to run again, because that specific bone doesn’t get much blood supply, which makes it hard to heal. She never finished her final year of NCAA eligibility at Weber State.

She went a couple of years without being able to run or could run very little,” says Paul Pilkington, Sellers’s coach at Weber State. “She wasn’t training a lot when in grad school but I think that helped her get healthy again. It’s the whole thing of ‘Hey I may never be able to run again’ that makes her appreciate it a lot.”

Sellers eventually did start running again as a graduate student at Barry University in Florida. She decided to target the 2018 Boston Marathon after her brother, Ryan, signed up. She earned her Boston qualifier in Huntsville and then reached out to Pilkington and asked him to help her train for the marathon.

(04/10/2019) Views: 1,141 ⚡AMP
by Jenna West

Sharon Cherop of Kenya is running the Boston Marathon aiming to reclaim title

Cherop, the 2010 Hamburg marathon champion is making a comeback to Boston where she will face an elite field of 21 other women marathoners comprising her compatriot Edna Kiplagat, the 2017 Boston marathon winner.

Of the 22 women in the elite field, 11 have under 2 hours, 23 minutes personal bests.

Cherop, who had finished third in 2011 will also have the reigning champion, Desiree Linden of the USA, to contend with during the April 15 race.

“This time, I am going back to Boston to do my best. I can only say that I want to be among the podium finishers,” Cherop told Standard Sport.

Cherop, who has relocated her training base from Eldoret to Kararia — a mountainous area in the Marakwet highlands said she is in top shape and her preparations for the Boston race are going on well.

“I have shifted my training base because Boston is a hilly course and I have to train in similar conditions. The altitude in Kararia is also high and is good for my preparations. I have been here for three weeks now,” the Eldoret City Marathon reigning champion said from the new training base.

When asked on the bruising battle expected from Ethiopia’s Aselefech Mergia with a 2:19:31 personal best she recorded at the 2012 Dubai marathon as well as her compatriot Edna Kiplagat, Cherop said:

“Before the race, everyone is a winner and I am ready and well prepared for the challenge.”

(04/04/2019) Views: 1,057 ⚡AMP

Nine former champions will be running the Boston Marathon this year

2019 Boston Marathon To Have 9 Former Champions In Elite Field. The Boston Athletic Association and sponsor John Hancock officially announced the entire team of elite runners Thursday for the 2019 race.

There will be 82 elite athletes competing, including Olympians, Paralympians, world champions and marathon majors winners from 15 countries.

The returning men’s champions will be:

2018: Yuki Kawauchi of Japan  2017: Geoffrey Kirui of Kenya  2016: Lemi Berhanu of Ethiopia  2015 and 2013: Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia  2012: Wesley Korir of Kenya

The returning women’s champions will be:

2018: Desiree Linden of the U.S.  2017: Edna Kiplagat of Kenya  2015: Caroline Rotich of Kenya  2012: Sharon Cherop of Kenya

Seven Boston Marathon wheelchair champions will also return for this year’s race, including defending champions Marcel Hug of Switzerland and Tatyana McFadden of the U.S.

(01/28/2019) Views: 1,244 ⚡AMP

2018 Boston Marathon Winner Desiree Linden will run the Louisiana Half Marathon in January

The first American female to win the Boston Marathon in 30 years, Desiree Linden, will compete in The Louisiana Half Marathon on Sunday, January 20, 2019.

She will use the race as a tune-up as she prepares for the 2019 Boston Marathon, taking place on Monday, April 15, 2019. Runners and spectators can meet Linden during the Shipt Louisiana Marathon Expo on Friday, January 18, and during a Q&A session with Linden on Sunday, January 20, at The Louisiana Marathon Finish Fest.

The full marathon boasted the highest percentage of Boston Qualifiers for January races last year.  There are four distances including the half marathon. 

“We are thrilled to have Des Linden join us for the 2019 race weekend. As she prepares to defend her Boston title by running The Louisiana Half Marathon, she will experience our fast and flat course, winding through downtown Baton Rouge, historic neighborhoods and LSU’s campus,” said The Louisiana Marathon Strategic Partnerships Director Craig Sweeney.

The three-day running festival, culminating with the nationally-recognized Finish Fest, is a culturally rich event that celebrates both running and the unique culture that defines Louisiana. 

(12/30/2018) Views: 1,077 ⚡AMP

Sara Hall will join women´s Elite 2019 Boston Marathon Field

Sara Hall and reported yesterday Jordan Hasay will join defending champions Desiree Linden and Tatyana McFadden on the starting line of the 123rd Boston Marathon on Monday, April 15, part of the event's elite women American field.

John Hancock, the financial services company which manages and bankrolls the race's top athletes on behalf of the Boston Athletic Association, reported earlier today that Hasay and Hall would be part of a 29-athlete elite American field.

"American distance running has never been stronger, and we're honored to support this talented U.S. elite team to showcase their dedication and passion for being the best of class," said John Hancock chief marketing officer Barbara Goose.

"With defending champions Des Linden and Tatyana McFadden leading the way, all runners are sure to persevere in the world's most historic race. We'll be cheering for everyone on Patriots' Day."

Hasay, 27, whose 2:23:00 marathon debut in Boston in 2017 remains the fastest-ever by an American woman, also signed up for the 2018 edition of the race but was unable to start due to a stress reaction in her heel.

She had backed up her Boston performance with a 2:20:57 in Chicago in October, 2017, but has not run a marathon since. Hasay was the 2017 USA 15-K and 20-K road running champion.

Hall, 35, was the 2017 USA marathon champion and is the only American athlete in history with national road racing titles from the mile to the marathon. She ran a personal best 2:26:20 at the Scotiabank Ottawa Marathon last May, but dropped out of the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon last October after running 25 kilometers with a "tweaked" peroneal, according to her official Twitter account.

(12/19/2018) Views: 1,076 ⚡AMP

Sarah Sellers has confirmed she will be running the 2019 Boston Marathon

In April, Sarah Sellers started the Boston Marathon with the elite female runners — it was just her second career marathon — and posted a surprising second-place finish.

At the 2019 race, she will return as part of the John Hancock US Elite Team. Sellers’s appearance was announced Tuesday along with the rest of the top American runners John Hancock, the race’s primary sponsor, will bring to Boston as part of its elite runner program.

Sellers will join Desiree Linden, whose intention to return to defend her victory was previously announced, and 2017 third-place finisher Jordan Hasay as the top American women in the field for the 2019 Boston Marathon on April 15. Sarah Hall, the 2017 US National Marathon champion, is also part of the team.

Flash Back: Sellers crossed the finish line in second place at the prestigious 26.2-mile race in rain-soaked conditions as a virtual unknown. Few online road-race results existed for Sellers, and she was not listed among the elite field. In the wet and windy conditions, Sellers wore a nondescript outfit, with no visible sponsors, and simply clicked the timer on her watch after crossing the finish line.

Her time of 2 hours 44 minutes 4 seconds left her in second place, and she was among seven American women in the top 10. Desiree Linden was the first American woman to win the race since 1985, a historic finish in a race full of surprises.

(12/18/2018) Views: 893 ⚡AMP

Yuki Kawauchi and Desiree Linden will return to defend their titles at the Boston Marathon

Yuki Kawauchi and Desiree Linden battled through dismal conditions last year, running in freezing rain and driving winds to claim their dramatic victories.

Known for his high-volume, high quality racing, Kawauchi has won over 30 marathons, holds the Japanese 50K national best time and has competed on three IAAF World Championships Marathon teams. But it was his victory in Boston that was his biggest to date. 

”My victory in Boston was a moment in my marathon life that I will never forget,” Kawauchi said.

“I look forward to meeting all my fellow runners in Boston and running together with them.” Linden, a two-time U.S. Olympian, captured headlines across the US with her victory, the first by an American woman in 33 years in the race.

“In 2007, I ran my first Boston Marathon; I absolutely fell in love with the event, the course, the city, all of it,” Linden said.

“I thought I had every experience imaginable racing in Boston, but in 2019 I’m thrilled and proud to have another first as I’ll start the race as the defending Boston Marathon champion.”

(12/10/2018) Views: 985 ⚡AMP

It would be really neat to have real time tracking in a race says Desiree Linden

Desiree Linden became the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon in 33 years. On a cold and rainy day in Massachusetts, Linden didn’t have much belief that she could win the 122nd version of the race. She even slowed down early into the race to wait her teammate, Shalane Flanagan, so that they could both catch back up to the elite pack together.  The weather conditions were very bad and the Boston Globe called it “the worst weather in Boston Marathon history.” After Linden and Flanagan caught back up to the pack, a surprising thing happened. 35-years-old Linden who trains in Michigan, began to pull away. She would end up winning the marathon in 2:39:54.  Most recently Desiree was one of four Americans to finished in the top seven at the New York City Marathon.  The website Sport Techie spoke with Desiree about Data Versus Disconnection and other matters.  “Running is still a pure sport where you can go out with just your shoes and kind of disconnect for a long time, which is refreshing in today’s world,” says Desiree. “But then you can implement technology as you go and take as as much data as you want. The range is different for everyone.  It would be really neat to have real-time tracking in the race via a mechanism in clothes or shoes. They could give you splits during the race every 5k or so, and there could be something in the shoe that could real-time track runners so that people could see heart rate and cadence during the race. I think that’d add an interesting graphic during race broadcasts.” How about the Balance Between Innovation and Ability? “A lot of big companies (like NIKE) are attempting to break the two-hour marathon barrier,” she says, “and see the shoe as a place to really make that jump. There’s definitely a movement in shoe technology. I think there’s a lot of brands trying to catch up in that race.  The question is how much do you let it impact your sport? Is the shoe doing the work or is it still the athlete? It’ll be interesting to watch and see how governing bodies decide if and when technology is taking over the actual capacity of the runner.” (11/18/2018) Views: 971 ⚡AMP
by Jen Booton @ SportTechie.com

Kenya's Mary Keitany pulled off her fourth New York City Marathon win crushing the field

Kenya's Mary Keitany opened up a lead after a 4:54 mile at the 20 mile mark.  The 36-year-old with a PR of 2:17:01 while winning the 2017 London Marathon was in control.  Mary won three consecutive TCS New York City Marathons from 2014 to 2016.  In 2016 her 3:34 margin of victory was the greatest in the women's race since 1980.  Last year she was runner-up to Shalane Flanagan clocking 2:27:54.  Today Shalane Flanagan was about a quarter mile back with six miles to go holding on to fifth place.  Molly Huddle (USA) was close behind.  At 35K Mary projected finish time was just 50 seconds off the course record.  The course record of 2:22:31 was set in 2003. Shalane Flanagan moved up to fourth at 35k with Molly in 5th.   Meanwhile Mary Keitany continued pulling further ahead clipping off 5:05 miles.  35-year-old Vivian Cheruiyot who won the 2018 London Marathon (2:18:31) upped her pace to 5:21/mile making a move on Ethiopian's Rahma Tusa who was second at 23 miles.  Mary crossed the finish line first clocking 2:22:48 crushing the field. Vivian Cheruityot was second in 2:26:02.  America’s Shalane Flanagan finished third in 2:26:22 and Molly Huddle was fourth in 2:26:44.  Rahma Tusa faded to fifth clocking 2:27:13.   2018 Boston marathon winner Desiree Linden placed 6th clocking 2:27:51.  Allie Kieffe (US) places 7th clocking 2:28:12.   (11/04/2018) Views: 1,440 ⚡AMP

America’s Molly Huddle just might be the one to beat at this year’s New York City Marathon

Last year Shalane Flanagan became the first American woman in 40 years to win the New York City Marathon. Desiree Linden followed with a victory in April at the Boston Marathon, the first American woman to win in 33 years. Those achievements motivate Molly Huddle, who finished third at the 2016 NYC Marathon in her debut after a successful middle-distance career. "We have a very talented group of women marathoners," Huddle said. The 34-year-old from upstate New York is among that group. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Huddle broke Flanagan's 10,000-meter American record from the 2008 Beijing Games. In January, Huddle broke Deena Kastor's 2006 American record at the Houston Half Marathon. Kastor, who won bronze in the marathon at the 2004 Athens Olympics, watched Huddle surpass her record in Texas. "Some of the other American women already have the accolades under their belt," Kastor said. "Molly is coming in a little more hungry. So I think we'll see something special out of her on Sunday." Huddle recently trained for two months in Arizona in the high altitude of Flagstaff and Scottsdale. She lives and trains in Providence, Rhode Island, where her longtime coach Ray Treacy is the track coach at Providence College.  The 5-foot-4 Huddle called it a "confidence boost" to finish on the podium in her first marathon. Defending champion Flanagan and Linden are in the field Sunday, along with Kenyans Mary Keitany and Vivian Cheruiyot. Last year, Flanagan brought it home to a cheering crowd against a fading Keitany. "She really captivated everybody watching, the two million people on the streets, those of us glued to our televisions or here at the finish line to welcome her at Central Park," Kastor said. "It was an extraordinary performance." Kastor thinks Huddle has a good chance on Sunday. Huddle aims to make the U.S. team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. "Molly has such a great range and she's pushing it into the marathon," said Kastor.  "She could really make the team in whatever event she chooses — 5K, 10K and marathon." Huddle attributes the surge of American women in the marathon to watching the likes of Kastor, Flanagan and others perform at international levels.  She says "once you see it is possible" it helps "shift your subconscious." "It's raised the bar," Huddle said. "It's more encouraging than anything."  (11/01/2018) Views: 1,114 ⚡AMP

Ethiopia's Shura Kitata runs fastest half in US and Linden are winners at Rock ’N’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon

Fall marathon season is in full swing, and the elites have started their tune-up races in preparation. So far, it’s been successful: Reigning Boston Marathon champion Desiree Linden took first at the Rock ’N’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon this weekend. The women’s field was stacked, and included Linden, Sarah Sellers, who finished second at Boston, and Kellyn Taylor. In the race, Linden was neck and neck with Taylor, until Linden pulled away late. Linden topped the podium with a time of 1:11:49, while Taylor took second with a 1:12:07. Taylor captured the attention of the running world in June when she won the Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota in 2:24:28, the seventh-fastest marathon time ever for an American woman. The men’s race was won by Ethiopia's Shura Kitata in a stunning 59:17.  This is the fastest half marathon run in the United States and the 6th best winning time in the world in the last 12 months.  Parker Stinson finished second, in 1:03:02, and Canada’s Cam Levins was third, in 1:03:10. Cam Levins also raced Philadelphia as a tune-up, in his case for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 21. Stinson will run Chicago on October 7. (09/17/2018) Views: 1,083 ⚡AMP

Desiree Linden who has been itching to get back to racing is set to run Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Half

The 2018 Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon will once again include a world-class group of elite men and women when they toe the line on September 15-16. With the depth of the elite field, the half marathon, which will take place on September 16, is set to be one of the most thrilling races of the year, taking runners along the flat and fast course that starts on Benjamin Franklin Parkway, runs through Center City before winding along the city’s scenic Schuylkill River and finishing at the iconic “Rocky Steps” of the Philadelphia Art Museum. Headlining the field will be Desiree “Des” Linden who won the 2018 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American woman to win the race in 33 years. Linden is a two-time Olympian from San Diego, California representing the United States of America at the last two Summer Olympic Games with her best finish coming in 2016 in Rio when she placed seventh. Her personal best in the marathon is 2:22:38 and 1:10:34 for the half marathon. “I’ve enjoyed the post-Boston victory tour, but I’ve been itching to get back to racing,” said Linden. “I can’t wait to head to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon to test out the legs and find out where I’m at with my fall marathon training. With the fast course and stellar competition the Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon always brings, it will be the perfect jumpstart to my fall racing season.” (08/26/2018) Views: 1,137 ⚡AMP

Mary Keitany win the NYRR New York Mini 10K by over one minute

More than 8,300 women took on 6.2 miles in Central Park this morning at the 47th running of the NYRR New York Mini 10K, bringing the event’s total finishers to more than 200,000 since its inception in 1972. Each year, the Mini celebrates women of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds coming together to advance their sport while having a great time running alongside their friends, teammates, mothers, daughters, sisters, and role models. Kenya's Mary Keitany, a three-time TCS New York City Marathon winner, took the top spot in the open division in 30:59, the fifth-fastest time in event history. Americans Aliphine Tuliamuk and Molly Huddle were second and third, in 32:08 and 32:25, respectively.  Star-studded professional athlete fields were followed by thousands of women, each with their own reason for running.  Stephanie Bruce finished 7th in 32:55.  Charlotte Arter finished 8th in 33:01.  Boston Marathon winner Desiree Linden was 14th in 35:12 while Sarah Sellers finished with 35:29 in 17th place.  40-year-old Roberta Groner from New Jersey ran 34:10 for 11th place and 50-year-old Fiona Bayly from New York finished 31st place with 37:50.  (06/09/2018) Views: 1,279 ⚡AMP

British 10,000m champion is looking forward to running the NYRR Mini 10K

Charlotte Arter  has already secured her 10,000m spot for the European Championships in Berlin. The 26-year-old added yet another PB to her 2018 list by clocking 32:15.71 when finishing third at last month’s Highgate Night of the 10,000m PBs – claiming European Cup bronze, the British title and her European Championships place in the process. With no standard to chase, Arter is looking forward to seeing what else she might be capable of over the next two months before she pulls on the GB vest once again. “Motivation is at an all-time high at the moment,” says the Cardiff athlete, reflecting on her run at Highgate which followed other recent PB performances over 5km, 10km and the half-marathon. “It makes all the hard work that you put in, not only over the last year but throughout the whole of your running career, worth it when you get an outcome like that. “It also gives you a bit of trust that you’re in great shape. It’s now more just a case of enjoying the rest of the summer. There’s no pressure now, it’s just taking each race as it comes and enjoying it all. “I know I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in.” “I absolutely loved my time in America so going back to race will be really cool,” says Arter, who now works full-time as a performance sport officer at Cardiff University. “I did a lot through the NCAA collegiate system but didn’t do much external racing so I’m looking forward to what will be my first pro race out there against a really high-quality field. It’s pretty amazing to be part of.” Kenya’s defending champion Mary Keitany and US runners Molly Huddle and Desiree Linden are also among the entries and Arter is keen to test herself at the NYRR Mini 10K.        (06/08/2018) Views: 1,148 ⚡AMP

10-Year-Old Arielle Avina, Becomes Youngest Female To Win A Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series 5K Event

10-year-old Arielle Avina (Murrieta, Cali.) shocked the finish line crowd today (Sunday June 3) as she won the female division at the Synchrony Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego 5K presented by Brooks. With this year’s Boston Marathon Champion, Desiree Linden on hand to support and inspire runners, Avina found an extra gear past other competitors finishing the race in a time of 19:20 as she became the youngest female to ever win a Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series 5K event. Baxter Arguinchona from Cardiff, California took home the men’s 5K race with a time of 16:59.  (06/05/2018) Views: 1,568 ⚡AMP

Boston Marathon Champion, Desiree Linden is returning to Boston for BAA10K

The BAA announced today that 2018 Boston Marathon champion Desiree Linden will return to Boston for June's BAA10K, presented by Brigham Womens. You can join Des and some of the world's fastest runners as the BAA kicks off summer at this fun race through the Back Bay. This year's event will be held on Sunday, June 24, and will have a maximum field size of 10,000 entrants. The women's course record was set by Shalane Flanagan in 2016.  She clocked 30:52 which is also the American Record. (04/27/2018) Views: 1,310 ⚡AMP

Desiree Linden was wet, was cold and wanted to stop but she didn’t as marathoners do and won Boston and $150,000

The weather Monday in Boston was more than bad, it was terrible. Shalane Flanagan posted, “Those were the most brutal conditions I’ve ever run in.”

One elite woman just kept putting one foot in front of the other faster than anyone else until the end. Desiree Linden even at one point waited for Shalane at a bathroom stop.

This brief break, might have helped Desiree get life back in her legs as well. Desiree caught back up to the lead pack but Shalane couldn’t hang. In the end Desiree won by nearly four minutes and became the the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon since Lisa Rainsberger in 1985.

Afterwards she said there were many moments she wanted to drop out but she kept on going. Was it worth it? For her efforts she was given a check for $150,000. She could have easily not finished.

It is interesting to note that according to the race director 95.5% of those who started finished. Very impressive but then again marathoners are a different breed.

(04/17/2018) Views: 2,138 ⚡AMP
by Bob Anderson

Desiree Linden this year was all alone as she crossed the finish line in Boston unlike in 2011

Desiree Linden became the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon since Lisa Rainsberger in 1985, ending the drought on a day when the runners faced a deluge of rain. Linden came two seconds from winning Boston in 2011. Before the race, Linden told Boston.com that her goal was to “compete up front and hopefully have that battle on Boylston again. And have a different outcome this time, for sure.” The first battle she was referring to came in 2011, when she matched Caroline Kilel stride for stride down the stretch but fell two seconds short of a laurel wreath. Linden, racing in her marathon debut, crossed the line in a personal best of 2:22:38. People expected her to feel ecstatic about the result, but she had spent four months convincing herself every day that she was going to win the race. “So when I crossed the finish line second, it was the first time in four months that I wasn’t the winner of the Boston Marathon and I was pretty pissed,” Linden said. There was no one to battle on Boylston this time around as she pulled away from the pack and raced alone to the finish line. (04/17/2018) Views: 971 ⚡AMP

So who is Sarah Sellers who place second at this year’s Boston Marathon?

Many of those who watched the Boston Marathon — even the ones who follow the sport of running — had the same question Monday: Who in the world is Sarah Sellers? Sellers crossed the finish line in second place at the prestigious 26.2-mile race, in rain-soaked conditions, as a virtual unknown. Few online road-race results existed for Sellers, and she was not listed among the elite field for Boston. In the wet and windy conditions, Sellers wore a nondescript outfit, with no visible sponsors, and crossed the finish line by simply clicking the timer on her watch. Her time of 2 hours 44 minutes 4 seconds put her second among the seven American women who placed in the top 10. Desiree Linden was the first American woman to win the race since 1985, a historic finish in a race full of surprises. But Sellers’s finish may have been the most improbable. “I mean, I still can’t believe I finished second,” Sellers, 26, said in a phone interview Monday afternoon. “I’m going to wake up and this will be a dream.” Sellers never planned to podium at Boston. Not when she was a standout runner at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, where she grew up. Not even when she qualified for Boston after winning the Huntsville Marathon last September in Utah in 2:44:27. She only signed up for Boston because her younger brother, 24-year-old Ryan Callister, was running it. (Ryan finished in 2:48:20.) Plus she’s also a nurse anesthetist who works full-time in Tucson. She doesn’t have an agent, or any sponsors, and has to fit in her workouts at either 4 a.m. before work or 7 p.m. after her 10-hour shifts at Banner Health Center. (04/16/2018) Views: 1,260 ⚡AMP

America’s Desiree Linden beats the weather and is first American to win the Boston Marathon in 33 years.

America's Desiree Linden took the lead at the 35K mark (2:12:22) with Kenya's Gladys Chesir right behind. Mamitu Daska from Ethiopian was elven seconds back in third place. Shalane Flanagan is not handling the weather well but is still hanging in there. There were four American's in the top ten at 35K. Des still lead the pack at the 40K mark of with an elapsed time of 2:31:13 and lead to the finish. Des went on to win in a time of 2:39:54. In the end seven American women finished in the top ten. Shalane Flanagan hung on to finish 7th. Desiree splashed her way through icy rain and a near-gale headwind to be the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon since 1985. The two-time Olympian and 2011 Boston runner-up pulled away at the end of Heartbreak Hill and ran alone through Brookline to finish almost four minutes ahead of second place. That's the slowest time for a women's winner since 1978. (04/16/2018) Views: 1,098 ⚡AMP

John Hancock Releases Pro Athletes’ Running Playlists On Spotify

What do Shalane Flanagan, Molly Huddle, Jordan Hasay and Desiree Linden have in common? Besides being speed demons, they’re also members of the John Hancock Elite Athlete Team who are racing the 2018 Boston Marathon–and, as of this morning, they’ve all shared curated running playlists with fans as part of their race-day buildup. The playlists are available for those interested in listening all the way through or matching music to specific paces or time spent running. Some also feature words of motivation from the athletes themselves. “In our 33 years sponsoring the Boston Marathon, we’ve never had the opportunity to offer this type of personal experience with our elite running team to so many,” said Barbara Goose, the chief marketing officer at John Hancock, (03/25/2018) Views: 1,341 ⚡AMP

Strongest American Elite Field Ever for Boston

MBR BEST 100: John Hancock announced its strongest U.S. Elite Team since its principal sponsorship began in 1986. The team, recruited to compete against an accomplished international field, will all be going for the coveted olive wreath on April 16, 2018. The US elite team: Shalane Flanagan, Galen Rupp, Sara Hall,Desiree Linden,Serena Burla, Shadrack Biwott, Abdi Abdirahman, Dathan Ritzenhein, Deena Kastor, Molly Muddle, Jordan Hasay, Scott Smith, Ryan Vail, Kellyn Taylor and Andrew Bumbalough. (12/12/2017) Views: 1,000 ⚡AMP